Australia’s most respected and revered composer passes at 85 after a period of illness.

Widely regarded as Australia’s most influential composer, Peter Sculthorpe has died, aged 85 at Wolpar Jewish Hospital in Woollahra following a prolonged battle with illness.

Sculthorpe’s prolific career as a composer, spanning over six decades, produced some of the most highly regarded contemporary repertoire in Australia. The distinctly Australian sound-world he developed in his music, which captured the dry, distant and rugged character of Australia’s landscape gained him international recognition and influenced a generation of Australian composers.

Emeritus Professor at the University of Sydney, until his retirement in 1999, Sculthorpe’s teaching inspired and nurtured many musicians including composers Ross Edwards, Anne Boyd, Barry Conyngham and Matthew Hindson. “The University, and the classical music world for that matter, is deeply saddened by the passing of Professor Peter Sculthorpe,” said Dr Michael Spence, Vice Chancellor, The University of Sydney. “He was an outstanding composer and a delightful man, who has built the music foundations of this University over several decades. Professor Sculthorpe is such a huge loss, but at the same time he leaves such a big music legacy”.

Dr Karl Kramer, Dean of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music...