Freeman McGrath

Born in 1977, Freeman McGrath grew up on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast and began piano at six, turning to composition in his late teens. In 1994 he entered the Queensland Conservatorium of Music, studying with Gerard Brophy and Stephen Cronin and winning the Composition prize in his first year. Early commissions came from Mackay’s Lyrebird Ensemble and Griffith University’s Collegiate Singers, and he took part in the Darwin International Guitar Festival workshops. After graduating in 1997 he co-founded the self-produced Brisbane composer collective COMPOST. Selected for the Australian Composers’ Orchestral Forum, he wrote orchestral works including Groundswell (2001) and Session (2002) for the West Australian Symphony Orchestra. An Associate Artist of the Australian Music Centre, McGrath later trained as a structural engineer while remaining musically active, performing at Woodford Folk Festival and Sydney Opera House.