Eleanor Alberga

Eleanor Deanne Therese Alberga (born 30 September 1949) is a Jamaican contemporary music composer who lives and works in the United Kingdom. Her most recent compositions include two violin concertos, a trumpet concerto and a symphony.

Career

Eleanor Alberga was born in Kingston, Jamaica. She decided at the age of five to be a concert pianist and began composing short pieces. While still at school, she played the guitar with The Jamaican Folk Singers. She studied music at Jamaica School of Music and in 1970 she won the biennial West Indian Associated Board Scholarship, which allowed her to study at the Royal Academy of Music in London, England, where one of her teachers was Richard Stoker. After completing her studies, she performed as a concert pianist. In 2001 she ended her career as a performer to concentrate full-time on composition and was awarded a NESTA Fellowship.

Alberga works as a guest lecturer at the Royal Academy of Music in London. She has been pianist and music director for the London Contemporary Dance Theatre and played with Nanquindo (four players on two pianos). Her music has been performed by the Royal Philharmonic, the London Philharmonic, Bournemouth Sinfonietta...

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