Don Harper(1921-1999)
- Composer
- Music Department
- Soundtrack
Don Harper studied under Raymond Hanson at the New South Wales
Conservatorium of Music in Australia. A jazz violinist and conductor,
he became the leader of one of Australia's most successful big bands,
and a successful composer of music for film and television. Harper
traveled to England and during his time there appeared frequently on
British radio and television, and performed at clubs and hotels such as
the London Palladium, the Savoy Hotel, Talk of the Town, and the
Windmill. He also recorded for Pye and Nixa. After seven successful
years in the UK, Harper returned to Australia where he toured the
capital cities with Dave Brubeck's Quartet, before settling in Sydney.
He spent the next four years in the recording studio, and performing on
television, radio, and in hotels and jazz clubs around the country.
Returning again to England, Harper turned to composition. He achieved
great success in this field, writing theme and background music for
many British TV shows. Harper returned to Australia in 1983, taking up
the position of Head of Jazz Studies at the Wollongong University's
School of Creative Arts, a position he held until 1990.