Barry Tuckwell born today in Melbourne Australia in 1931. He joined the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra at the age of 15 by accident after playing the french horn for only a year. His sister was wondering out loud when he was 13 what to do with him since he was obviously musical; so she assumed he could play something. A colleague overheard the conversation and suggested he be a horn player. He tried it and in an interview in 2005, he was quoted saying jokingly,"Piece of cake! Only one note at a time." From a musical stand point, being a french horn player is quite tough. It can be compared to playing the Oboe, the hardest woodwind instrument to play.
Tuckwell was encouraged to travel and take advantage of a great opportunity in England. He joined the Scottish Symphony Orchestra to the Halle to the Bourne Symphony Orchestras before landing the prominent role of principal horn player with the London Symphony for 13 years. He resigned his position to pursue a solo career. He's written books and a guide to playing the horn that is out of print, but is in high demand.
His final solo performance was with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra on January 25, 1996. He returned to the stage to perform fourth horn part of Schumman's Konzertstuck for Four Horns in Melbourne in 2006. He lives in Australia today.
Our famous Australian is our Australian II America's Cup yacht.
Designed by Ben Lexcen, built by Stephan Ward, owned by Alan Bond and helmed by John Bertrand, the Australia II featured an innovative winged keel design developed by Lexcen. This helped to make it very fast and maneuverable
in many conditions, and was the most notable and controversial design feature of the boat. During the summer of 1983, as selection trials took place for the Cup defense that autumn, it was unclear whether the keel design was legal within the strict rules governing the 12-meter class.
America's Cup
Australia II, bearing sail number KA6, represented the Royal Perth Yacht Club of Australia in its September 1983 challenge for the America's Cup. The defender, the New York Yacht Club, had held the cup since 1851, dominating challengers and sustaining the longest winning streak in sport. Popular culture
The Boxing Kangaroo was the official mascot of the Australia II effort. The win was received with much enthusiasm in Australia, with the Men at Work song Down Under becoming the official anthem for the crew.
To learn more about our Australia II, please visit our website.
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