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In memoriam, David Fanshawe: April 19, 1942-July 5, 2010

Jul. 13, 2010

David Fanshawe, composer and explorer, died on July 5, 2010, following a stroke. He was 68. He is survived by his wife, Jane, and their daughter Rachel, his former wife (Judith Croasdell), and their children Alexander and Rebecca. The news has come as a great shock to his many colleagues, friends and fans from around the world. David Fanshawe will be best remembered for his legendary choral work African Sanctus and for his great legacy to World Music The Fanshawe Collections–a vast archive of recordings of traditional music. David Fanshawe’s last completed work is Pacific Song–for chorus, flute and percussion–inspired by the music of Tonga.  It is one movement of Pacific Odyssey, a large–scale work, which he left unfinished. The last performances of African Sanctus attended by the composer took place in June 2010; one in Bahrain, and one at St Martin-in-the-Fields–with The London Chorus, conducted by Ronald Corp–held in aid of the Footballs for Fun Trust.

There are hundreds of hours' worth of songs, dances and rituals, an entire ethnological treasure-trove, that David recorded painstakingly around the world belonging to tribes and communities in developing countries whose heritage since then - the 60s, 70s and 80s - has disappeared. He has saved for posterity the voices of their ancestors and the musical footprint of their existence. David's passion for the music of other cultures was never touristic, he had a deep respect for the people and cultures he engaged with and believed that the recording of their music was an act of love and admiration, which it was. As every decade passes since he conducted his monumental task, his contribution will seem ever greater, ever more precious, to rank alongside that of Bartók in Hungary or Evgeniya Lineva in Russia at the turn of the 20th century. His own composing paid tribute to his research into other cultures but retained an authentic, heartfelt Britishness, confirming the truth that it is only by appreciating one's own culture that one can truly relate to those of others, as equals. He will be sorely missed as a musician, friend, composer, but beyond the personal, his contribution to the preservation of now lost musical wonders of the world was a towering achievement that can never be matched or repeated. The world of music is a hugely poorer place without him.

– Howard Goodall, composer and broadcaster

Learn more on the life and music of David Fanshawe by visiting www.davidfanshawe.com.

Learn more on African Sanctus here.

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