OBITUARY: MORRIS PERT
ONE OF the most talented musicians ever to come out of Arbroath, Morris Pert, has died at the age of 62.
Not only did Mr Pert have a string of academic qualifications, but his was a household name among rock stars such as Sir Paul McCartney and Phil Collins.
Mr Pert's father was Jimmy Pert, who had a popular music shop/cafe in Commerce Street, and who was a saxophone player with the Marine Band.
Morris was educated at Inverbrothock Primary and Arbroath High Schools, where he was a music medallist, and then attended Edinburgh University where he gained a Bachelor of Music degree.
From there he went to study composition and percussion at the Royal Academy, London. He was also an Associate of Trinity College London in piano teaching.
His talent in composing was recognised while he was studying, and awards included the 1970 Royal Philharmonic Award for an orchestral work, Xumbu-Ata.
After graduating he had a two-year spell with Japanese percussionist Stomu Yamash'ta, which included both writing and performing in public.
He also formed his own experimental music group, Suntreader.
His musical talents followed two distinct threads, with numerous compositions, many commissioned by the BBC, as well as symphonies and incidental music for productions of Shakespearean plays.
But his musical double life took him into the world of rock, and he had a long-time association with the band Genesis, and members Phil Collins and Peter Gabriel.
He provided percussion for Kate Bush's Hounds of Love album (1985) and the Paul McCartney & Wings LP 'Back to the Egg' (1979), among many other landmark records.
He also worked as a session musician with, among others, Andrew Lloyd-Webber, Mike Oldfield, Mike Rutherford, John Williams and the jazz-rock band, Brand X.
In 1977 he was voted the fourth jazz and rock percussionist in the world by America's Billboard magazine.
Over his career he received five gold albums.
Morris Pert died at his remote home, at Balchrick, Rhiconich, Sutherland, where he had set up his own recording studio.
He retained an interest in Arbroath, and although his visits were generally for family funerals, a cousin told us that he would chat for ages on the telephone about the town of his birth.
Among his connections with Arbroath was his association in the early days with Arbroath Folk Club, where he was a member of the group Triad.
A cremation will take place at the small chapel in Inverness Crematorium tomorrow (Saturday) at 10.30 a.m.
Morris's parents are both buried in Arbroath and a ceremony is planned for later in the year when his ashes will be scattered at their grave.
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Weather for Arbroath
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 11 C to 18 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
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