Dr. Malcolm Forsyth: 1936-2011

The family and friends of Dr. Malcolm Denis Forsyth sadly announce his passing on July 5, 2011 after an heroic battle with cancer.

Dr. Forsyth was formidable in many regards. As a trombonist, he had all the brashness of a brass player. He was a stickler for getting things right and would settle for nothing less than a class one performance. As a composer, he pushed all the instruments of the orchestra to their limits. He was unique in blending rhythms of his homeland, South Africa, with the more conventional rhythms of classical music. As a teacher, he would accept no second class work. His students could slip nothing past him. Many students described him as the most influential on their musical career. As a friend, he was often a challenge, never letting go a casual statement that was ill-thought out. He loved to debate and loved to win. He loved a crowd, and he loved the stage, and when he walked into a room, the room became full. He loved to tell stories and make people laugh.

Malcolm loved the people in his life, above all, his daughter, Amanda, his wife Valerie, and his poodle, Keats. He wrote several works for Amanda, an internationally acclaimed cellist, and they often appeared on stage together.

Apart from his music, Malcolm’s list of interests was endless: poetry, history, religion, politics, woodworking, water colours, languages, and travel. He was a voracious reader - in his areas of knowledge, he was encyclopedic.

He was a Professor of Music at the University of Alberta for 34 years and was Composer-In-Residence at the time of his retirement in 2002. Among his many awards were three Junos for his compositions, Canadian Composer of the Year in 1989 and was awarded the Order of Canada in 2003.

Malcolm was diagnosed with cancer September 2010 and underwent several chemotherapy treatments. Although severely weakened, he was able to attend the premiere of his latest work, A Ballad of Canada, at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa in early June.

Malcolm leaves to mourn his wife, Valerie, his daughter Amanda, son- in-law Pinchas Zukerman; his brother Donald and sister-in-law Rhona in South Africa and their children.

A Memorial Service for Dr. Forsyth was held on August 26, 2011 at Convocation Hall on the University of Alberta campus.

The poem Malcolm by Carl Hare.

Program from the memorial service.

Donations honouring Dr. Forsyth may be sent to the:

Department of Music Fund, Development Office, University of Alberta

3rd Floor, 10230 Jasper Ave.

Edmonton AB  T5J 4P6

Attention:  M. Diakiw

Download Dr. Forsyth Music Fund Form

Please make cheques payable to the University of Alberta and indicate that funds are to be deposited to the Department of Music Fund in Memory of  Dr. Malcolm Forsyth.

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"(Forsyth's) music is an eclectic mix of elements of South African and North American folk music, a mix which produces a very personal style. His orchestral sense is, as one would expect with his background, superb...There is a simple, unaffected, honest expression to the music that at its best finds me more moved than by some music which may have more profound aspirations."
Dr. Karl F. Miller, Classical Net Review

"Forsyth's recent music shatters the myth that modern music is dry and academic. (His) work has the sense of a constant wind, a lightness, an optimism blowing through it, (and) there is always the sense of mystery..."
Murray Dineen, The Ottawa Citizen
On the Ottawa premiere of Electra Rising


"I always have had a sense of responsibility to the audience, coming from a deep sense of belief. I am myself a dedicated audience member, dedicated to the idea of concert music that does sweep people away. I'm never more happy than when I can be transported by a performer or performance. Everything I've done is with that experience in mind: Changing the space that the audience sits in for those brief few moments. I believe in the audience's musical intelligence. The most important people are the ones who are choosing to be there. I trust them and believe in their reaction."

Malcolm Forsyth on his music

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