Gary Brain

Gary Clifford Dennis Brain (1943 - ) is a conductor and former musician. After an airline accident damaged his wrist beyond repair, ending his career which included being principal percussionist for the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, he retrained as a conductor. He studied with Rafael Kubelik for four years, a profession he has had since 1990.

Background and personal life

Brain was born in Palmerston North New Zealand in 1943, the only child of Ivy and Clifford Brain. He is divorced with two children.
He has lived in Paris for more than twenty years. He was a member of the New Zealand National Youth Orchestra throughout his teens.
As a child he studied the piano, cello, horn and percussion instruments.

Career

He began his career as a timpanist playing in many orchestras, after studies at Berlin's Staatliche Hochschule für Musik and the Conservatoire National in Paris. After an airline accident damaged his wrist beyond repair, ending his career which included being principal percussionist for the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, he retrained as a conductor. He studied with Rafael Kubelik for four years, a profession he has had since 1990.

CONCERTS IN SCHOOLS; Gary Brain is a household name in New Zealand because of his nationwide school's concerts programme. He is estiomated to have performed to more than a million NZ students during the two + decades he ran this solo project.

In 1997 he won an "Echo/grammu Award" Echo Award for "Conducting The Orchestral CD of the Year" while conducting with London's Philharmonia Orchestrain 1997.

Early Life

Gary showed an early aptitude for music beginning the piano at the age of four.
He later played the cello, horn, trumpet, timpani and percussion including drums in the school pop group.

Studies

At 18, Gary Brain was awarded a scholarship to study in Berlin, Germany, at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik.
He studied conducting, piano, cello, timpani and percussion with the principal timpanist of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, composition with Boris Blacher and all general music subjects.
He obtained a B. Mus. (bachelor of music) from Indiana University, USA, and went on to take up a position in the BBC Training Orchestra in Bristol, UK.

First step career

In 1968, Gary was offered the position of Principal Timpanist/Percussionist of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra.
He performed three concerti with the NZ Symphony Orchestra, the first percussionist to do so.
For the first time in New Zeland, students could obtain a B.Mus in percussion performance when Gary Brain taught them.
He founded “Music for Youth” which was the South Pacific’s branch of the “World Youth Orchestra”.

Schools Concerts

Gary Brain founded his famous “Gary Brain’s Concerts in Schools Programme”. Gary was determined to make kiwi kids interested in classical music in a light and entertaining way.

Using a custom-made trailer, Gary Brain travelled all over New Zealand visiting every school, college and universities with two tonnes of instruments for twenty-four years. He performed to more than one million New Zealand school children and teachers alike.

Holding a full-time principal position with the NZSO at the same time, Gary often had to drive through the night. Gary never made any profit for himself; he simply believed in sharing his passion for music and in building a cultural identity for New Zealand children.

Gary Brain also took this educational programme to Brazil - performing in the poor favelas of Rio de Janeiro-, Buenos Aires in Argentina, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore or even to Egypt. In Hong Kong, China and the Philippines, the programme was televised.
Gary performed in Asian refugee camps where and whenever possible.

External links

• Gary Brain's Website