This year, CMC Prairie recognizes the 25th anniversary of Violet Archer’s passing. Our regional CMC library is sustained by an annual endowment from the Violet Archer estate that facilitates new purchases and the expansion of our collection. We are deeply appreciative of this contribution, and in turn will do our utmost to ensure that the legacy and essence of Violet Archer’s work continues for generations to come. Violet Archer (1913–2000) is widely regarded as one of the most important figures of Canadian music history. A Canadian composer, pianist, organist, percussionist, and music educator, Archer showed promise as a composer in her adolescence, and went on to study at McGill University, receiving a Licentiate in Music diploma in 1934 and BMus degree in 1936. Archer also acquired an associate diploma from the Royal Canadian College of Organists in 1938. Archer’s career path took a fortuitous turn when she visited New York in the summer of 1942, soon after beginning studies there with Béla Bartók. She continued her education at Yale University with Paul Hindemith, earning a B.Mus. in 1948 and M.Mus. in 1949, truly extraordinary feats for a woman of her generation. Following completion of her studies, Archer became composer-in-residence at the University of North Texas, and also taught at the University of Oklahoma from 1953 to 1961.

After returning to Canada, Archer joined the Faculty of Music at the University of Alberta in the Theory and Composition Department, and remained there until her retirement in 1990. The influence of Bartók and Hindemith is evident in her works who encouraged her to develop a compositional language incorporating various modernist techniques and moving away from the strictly classical tonal anchoring – though without shedding it completely. In the words of Frédérick Duhautpas, “She was particularly influenced by Hindemith’s harmonic system, which she reused in her own works, while taking certain liberties as her style matured. Her music is sometimes also marked by the influence of Schoenberg, though she never fully embraced that doctrine. Certain passages and pieces occasionally present the sombre and anxious aspect of the expressionist aesthetic.” Her work is also characterized by an openness to innovation and the evolution of compositional techniques of the time, and Archer trained in electronic composition techniques at London’s Goldsmith College late in her career. Archer was extremely prolific, with over 300 works to her name, characterized by multiple genres and versatility, encompassing comic operas, music for documentaries, and even electronic music in the 1970s, alongside more traditional configurations and instrument settings.

Archer was extremely prolific, with over 300 works to her name, characterized by multiple genres and versatility, encompassing comic operas, music for documentaries, and even electronic music in the 1970s, alongside more traditional configurations and instrument settings.

Fast Facts about Violet Archer:

  • She was born Violet Balestreri to Italian immigrants, but the family changed their last name to Archer in 1940.
  • The Canadian indie-rock band The Violet Archers is named for the composer.
  • She found recognition when her piece Britannia: A Joyful Overture (1941) was selected to be performed at the BBC and recorded for the armed forces in Europe.
  • She was highly decorated over the course of her career, receiving the Order of Canada in 1983, Alberta’s Life Achievement Award in 1990, the Canada 125 prize in 1992, and the International Biographical Centre’s title of International Woman of the Year, American Biographical Institute’s Woman of the Year and Most Admired Woman of the Decade, all in 1993.
  • Archer’s notable students included Larry Austin, Shauna Rolston, Allan Gilliland, and Allan Gordon Bell.

 

To learn more about Violet Archer, check out her CMC profile HERE