14 May 2009 Following the passing of Professor Walter Mony on Thursday 1 January 2009, WitsMusic is holding a memorial concert on Sunday 24 May in the Atrium.

Some of the musicians who will be performing are:

The Trio comprising Peta-Ann Holdcroft, Srdjan Cuca and Olga Tsihelashvili will play the Beethoven Trio No. 4.;

Kristel Birkholtz and Michael Watt will play a Sonata by Grazyna Bacewicz (an accomplished Polish woman composer – now deceased);

Malcolm Nay and Helen Vosloo will play the Suite Afrique for cello and piano by Jeanne Zaidel-Rudolph (the work was premiéred and recorded by Prof Walter Mony and Professor Jeanne Zaidel Rudolph - the only existing recording);
Malcolm Nay and Zanta Hofmeyr will play works by Faure and Debussy
.
Professor Jeanne Zaidel-Rudolph will introduce the concert and then former colleagues of Walter Mony’s, namely Prof Mary Rörich, Peta - Ann Holdcroft, Malcolm Nay and Pauline Nossel, will pay verbal tribute to him.

PROFESSOR WALTER MONY

WALTER MONY was born in Canada, studied music there, in the USA and at the Royal College of Music in London on an Associated Board Scholarship. He commenced studies on the violin with George Bornoff and John Waterhouse in Winnipeg, and was a frequent winner in the annual Festival events. At the RCM he studied violin with Albert Sammons and Henry Holst, Theory with Dr. S. Watson and Conducting with Richard Austin. Subsequently he had private tuition with Max Rostal and Henryk Szeryng.

He gave many contemporary works and concertos their first performance, several of which have been dedicated to him, and he appeared on television and broadcast performances and tours as a conductor, concert artist, adjudicator, master-class clinician and lecturer in the United Kingdom, Europe, New Zealand, USA, Canada and Southern Africa.  Records and compact discs of performances have been released internationally.

He was appointed as Senior Lecturer at the University of the Witwatersrand in 1970 where he was the musical director and conductor for numerous operatic/musical productions and symphony concerts.  

Walter Mony received his doctorate from the University of the Witwatersrand on the 15th December 1982 for his research on Avant-Garde String Techniques, and was subsequently appointed as Professor in the Chair of Music and Head of the Department.

As a chamber musician, Walter Mony was the violin/viola member of the internationally known Nederburg Harp Trio (with Kathleen Alister and Lucien Grujon), which toured Europe successfully, recorded for the BBC in London, and had several recordings released in the USA.  He was the founder-conductor of the SABC Youth Training Orchestra and received critical acclaim for conducting the orchestra in Lausanne, Switzerland at the International Festival and on several South American tours. He organized and directed the Total Music Collection, a project sponsored by the Total Oil Co. SA, which commissioned works from leading South African composers.

The University of the Witwatersrand conferred on him the titles of Professor Emeritus and Honorary Professorial Research Fellow for his meritorious service.  Many of his students hold prominent teaching and playing positions in Europe, the UK, USA and Southern Africa.

As of January 2005, Walter Mony was appointed Head of Strings at the prestigious Victoria Conservatory of Music, British Columbia, Canada.

This concert is an opportunity to acknowledge Professor Walter Mony’s great contribution to music; some of the tributes below are representative of the overwhelming response to the news of his death:

Tommy Rajna, Cape Town, S.A.
Dear Walter, your old friend salutes you in this celebration of a magnificently fulfilled life. Your work lives on in all those students and fellow musicians for whose education and support you spared no pains. May you continue your good vibes up above and broaden the minds of the angels, so that they will discover the magic of string instruments and ring the changes from their eternal harping.

Mary Tennant (Former student in SA)
He was an inspiration because he would be working on several projects at once, and would still make time to teach, conduct,
rehearse or practice for a concert or six. His energy, intellect and dedication, accompanied by a good joke and a hearty laugh, ensured that all interactions with him were dynamic, entertaining and insightful.

Dr. Malcolm Forsyth, C.M. Professor Emeritus, Music Dept., Canada
Having had him as a colleague and a friend is the most immense privilege and I shall cherish the times, too few, that we spent together. He has had the most enormous effect on the lives of thousands of musicians, and every one of them will remember him fondly. What energy, what doggedness, what faith he exhibited to all who had the privilege to be around him.

Johan Grobbelaar     
From the age of 17 when I arrived at the University of Pretoria as a disoriented first year student (40 years ago), Walter became a hugely stabilizing influence in my vision of the world; he was always a presence in my landscape, not as a little hill but has a mountain. Walter was there during a formative time in my life, traveling in orchestras and to countless rehearsals, concerts and tours, so that he became in my mind and memory a permanent reference. He set an example for me in integrity, honesty and being true to one’s own principles. And yes, he was stoic, and never allowed difficulties to influence his better judgement and way of dealing with others.                             


Sue, Mark, Danielle and Michael Glasser, Melbourne, Australia
Whenever we visited Aunty Ann and Uncle Wally – the house was filled with music and there was always a student having a lesson and the sound of the violin in the background; there is no doubt that the world is a better place because Walter Mony shared himself and his abilities with it.

PRODUCTION: The Walter Mony Memorial Concert

VENUE: The Atrium, Wits East Campus, Braamfontein

SEASON: Sunday 24 May @ 15h00

RUNNING TIME: Performances - 60 minutes, plus short tributes

BOOKING: Free admission                                             

ENQUIRIES: 011 717 1376 / This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.