Ian Stewart is a professional composer/musician who grew up in England, Scotland and Malta. While in his teens he was one of the few composers to have attended composition lessons with Franz Reizenstein, a pupil of Hindemith. Afterwards he had lessons with contemporary pianist and composer Thomas Rajna.

For two consecutive years he attended a contemporary music summer school, taught by Paul Patterson, which included working with the VCS3 synthesizer. It was during these courses that works for alto flute, cor anglais with live electronics with 3 asynchronous electronic tapes; and a work for woodwind quartet (2 flutes, oboe and clarinet) with pre-recorded woodwind quartet, were performed.

A classically trained pianist - particularly interested aleatoric music - he also played trombone in the Scottish Youth Brass Band and the San Gejtanu Band in Hamrun, Malta. He has also frequently composed music for contemporary dance performances.

After being asked to write a work for John Harle and the Smith Quartet, he has composed many works for classical saxophone in various ensembles, sometimes including turntables.

He was string arranger on the Love album released by Zomba Production Music and his electronica and rock music is released by three library companies.


A CD of recent chamber music - Islas - was released on the Music Chamber label in October 2010, featuring music for classical saxophone (soprano and tenor), violin and piano. These compositions reflect the influences of ambient, psychedelic folk and Celtic music as well as Baroque and 19th century classical music.

His compositions have been performed in classical concerts, received several broadcasts on Catalunya Mùsica, and on BBC Radio 3; and frequently used in television programmes. Classical compositions have been performed by Kyle Horch, Carole Sutherland, John Harle with the Brodski Quartet and Smith Quartet, the Cre.Art Ensemble in Catalunya, and at one of the inaugural concerts at the Bob Cole Conservatory, California.


Arrangements of Chick Corea's Children's Songs have been broadcast by John Harle on BBC Wales Music Now and BBC Radio 3.

Listen to California,composed by Ian Stewart from Synchromatic by Hugh Burns :

California



Hugh Burns - guitar
Malcolm Creese - Bass
Mike Smith - drums
available on Acoustic Masters

Early days : a live prime time Friday evening broadcast on London's Capital Radio 1982.

Listen to his arrangement in which he took the minimal harmony and rough open 5th chords, typical of New Wave guitar bands, and used those as a basis for this arrangement of a swing band standard.

Don't Get Around Much Anymore



played by Richard Green's Next Step Band (with Ian Stewart Arp Quadra)