| 82nd | Top Scottish musicians |
| Evelyn Glennie | |
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 Evelyn Glennie at Moers Festival 2004
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Evelyn Elizabeth Ann Glennie |
| Born | July 19, 1965  Aberdeen, Scotland |
| Occupations | Percussionist |
| Instruments | Percussion |
Dame Evelyn Elizabeth Ann Glennie, DBE (born July 19, 1965 in Aberdeen), is a Scottish virtuoso percussionist. She was the first full-time solo percussionist in 20th-century western society.[1]
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Evelyn Glennie was brought up on a farm in Aberdeenshire near where she was born. Her father was Herbert Arthur Glennie, an accordionist in a Scottish country dance band, and the strong, indigenous musical traditions of north-east Scotland were important in the development of the young musician, whose first instruments were the mouth organ and the clarinet. Other major influences were Glenn Gould, Jacqueline du Pré and Trilok Gurtu. She studied at Ellon Academy and the Royal Academy of Music, and was also a member of the National Youth Orchestra of Scotland.
Glennie tours extensively in the northern hemisphere, spending up to four months each year in the United States, and performs with a wide variety of orchestras and contemporary musicians, giving over 100 concerts a year as well as master classes and "music in schools" performances. She frequently commissions percussion works from composers and performs them in her concert repertoire.
She also plays the Great Highland Bagpipes and has her own registered tartan known as "The Rhythms of Evelyn Glennie". Glennie is in the process of producing her own range of handmade jewellery,[1] and also works as a motivational speaker.
Glennie has been profoundly deaf since age 12. This does not inhibit her ability to perform at the international level. She regularly plays barefoot for both live performances and studio recordings, to better "feel" the music.[2]
Glennie contends that deafness is largely misunderstood by the public. She claims to have taught herself to hear with parts of her body other than her ears. In response to criticism from the media, Glennie published Hearing Essay in which she personally discusses her condition.
Glennie featured on Icelandic singer Björk's album Telegram, performing the duet "My Spine". She has collaborated with many other musicians including former Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett, Bela Fleck, Bobby McFerrin, Fred Frith and The King's Singers.
On 21 November 2007, the UK government announced an infusion of £332 million for music education. This resulted from a successful lobbying spearheaded by Glennie, Sir James Galway, Julian Lloyd Webber, and Michael Kamen, who also (in 2002/2003) together formed the Music in Education Consortium.[2]
In 1994, Glennie married composer, sound engineer and tuba player Greg Malcangi, with whom she collaborated on several musical projects. They divorced in 2003 following her widely-publicised affair with orchestral conductor Leonard Slatkin.[3]
Glennie has won many awards, including:
She is the recipient of fifteen honorary doctorates from universities in the United Kingdom, was awarded the OBE in 1993 and promoted to DBE in the New Year's Honours of 2007.[5]
She owns over 1800 percussion instruments from all over the world and is continually adding to her collection.
   | Evelyn Glennie's website - Dame Evelyn Glennie, Motivational Speaker, Media Composer, Jewellery Designer |
| | 2007 honours list - BBC NEWS | UK | Rod and Zara top New Year Honours |
| | PBS Interview, Jun 14 1999 - Online NewsHour: Evelyn Glennie -- June 14, 1999 |
| | Profile: Leonard Slatkin: Last night of the maestro who hit a wrong note - Profile: Leonard Slatkin: Last night of the maestro who hit a wrong note -Times Online |
| | Aberdeen International Youth Festival website - AIYF | Aberdeen International Youth Festival |
| | Evelyn Glennie's videoclips - YouTube - Evelyn Glennie - Short Promo |
| | How to listen to music with your whole body - Evelyn Glennie shows how to listen | Video on TED.com |
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