Humanities Academy

Thursday, 28 November 2013

University of Newcastle Associate Professor Rosalind Halton has been elected as a new Honorary Fellow to the Australian Academy of the Humanities, one of the highest honours available for achievement in the humanities in Australia.

Rosalind-Halton 2Associate Professor Halton, of the University's Humanities Research Institute, is an accomplished harpsichord player and researcher who specialises in bringing to performance little-known, and often previously unheard works, by the Italian Baroque composer Alessandro Scarlatti.

Twenty leading scholars were elected as Fellows of the Academy in recognition of major contributions in their areas of expertise. This year eight Honorary Fellows were also elected, a category which honours distinguished public figures who advocate for the humanities, practitioners of the arts, or overseas scholars in the humanities who have a close association with Australia.

Associate Professor Halton is a researcher who works in the field of historically-based music performance.

"Central to my work is the concept of performance research which involves performance as a testing ground for theories about music creativity of past and present," she said.

Associate Professor Halton joined the University of Newcastle in 1999. Her work includes postgraduate supervision, harpsichord teaching, coaching ensembles in 17th-18th century music, and teaching performance practice as an academic and practical subject.

"It has been exciting to create many first performances and recordings of Scarlatti's music here in Newcastle with Australia's leading performers of baroque music (for ABC Classics), and more recently to be asked to supply my editions to international ensembles that are among the best worldwide, including Naples where Scarlatti worked."

The Australian Academy of the Humanities elected 28 new Fellows at its Annual General Meeting this month.

"The Academy offers its warmest congratulations to its newly elected Fellows," said Academy President, Professor Lesley Johnson AM FAHA.

"Their election is a testament to both the excellence and influence of their scholarship, and reflects the esteem in which they are regarded in Australia and internationally."

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