Statement made on 06 October 2011 by Senator Tommy Banks (retired)
Hon. Tommy Banks:
Honourable senators, I rise today to mark the passing in Edmonton on July 5 of a man who might arguably be characterized as Canada's most internationally successful composer. His name was Malcolm Forsyth. He died of a disease against which he battled and, I can tell you, which offended him.
It seems almost oxymoronic to say that Malcom Forsyth was a successful orchestral composer in Canada in the 21st century. Malcolm was successful on all counts. He was successful aesthetically and artistically because he wrote music that received both critical and public acclaim. He was also successful in the commercial sense because his music is played and recorded all over the world, in particular his three symphonies, his four concerti, much of his chamber music, his other orchestral works and much of his choral music, which will be with us forever.
Malcolm Forsyth received, among many other accolades, the Order of Canada. Just weeks before his death, his epic, iconically Canadian orchestral work, A Ballad of Canada, was premiered at the National Arts Centre by the National Arts Centre Orchestra, conducted by Pinchas Zukerman. It was a moment he was able to attend, which makes us all very happy — Malcolm Forsyth.