GWYNETH (Gwen) DIXON OAM (1920-2011)
Gwen Dixon was a Tasmanian soprano, much loved as a performer and teacher. She grew up in Devonport, but was later based in Hobart. She was a protégée of Marianne Mathy, and was awarded a 2-year scholarship to the Royal College of Music in London, which she decided to forego because she had a young family. During a 35-year singing career, Gwen was well known as a soloist with the Sydney Symphony and other orchestras, and for the various opera and operetta roles she performed at the Theatre Royal, and regular vocal recitals for the ABC in Tasmania and the Eastern states during the 40s and 50s.
Gwen had a deep passion for choral music. She founded the Devonport Choral Society which she conducted for 20 years from 1938. In 1954 she conducted a 2000-voice children’s choir for the visit of Queen Elizabeth to Australia. After moving to Hobart in 1963, Gwen was Musical Director for the Theatre Royal Opera Chorus then founded the Theatre Royal Light Opera Company (TRLOC). She conducted all TRLOC’s productions for over 15 years – except once , in 1977, when she was persuaded to come out of the orchestra pit to sing the role of Mother Superior in The Sound Of Music.
A dynamic leader in many roles, Gwen engaged actively throughout her life in a wide range of community activities: she was founding president of the Devonport Soroptimist Club, was a Board member of the Theatre Royal and the Tasmanian Arts Advisory Board, recorded for over 20 years for the Tasmanian Hear-a-Book service and was an active in the Australian-American Association.
Gwen worked as Public Relations Officer for the Tasmanian Theatre Trust in the 70s. After retiring from TRLOC in 1983 she set up the Tasmanian Casting Service, and continued teaching singing and conducted the U3A Choir until she was well into her eighties. She was a regular contributor to the Devonport Times Magazine and was a prolific creative writer. In 1996, she was awarded an OAM for services to the musical and cultural life of Tasmania, and was named Hobart’s Senior Citizen of the Year in 2000
Gwen was a marvellous raconteur and an exceedingly generous hostess whose company was a delight. Her many colleagues, students and friends wish to perpetuate her lifelong contribution to Tasmania’s cultural life by establishing a prestigious perpetual prize in her memory.
Contributions are invited to the Gwyneth Dixon Memorial Award Fund, to be inaugurated in 2013, which will provide a substantial annual prize for a singer.
A memorial celebration of Gwen’s life will be held on Wednesday 28 March, at the Theatre Royal, Hobart from 5.30pm. Donations to the fund will be accepted at the celebration, but can also be posted to the address below, or made by bank deposit to BSB 017 010 a/c no 2046 11006
