In this biography
Quick facts
- Born
- 1933
- Died
- 2021
- Birthplace
- Sarnia, Ontario, Canada
- Country
- Canada
- Nationality
- Not independently established
- Known for
- Music and acoustic ecology
Why this life matters
He brought musical composition into conversation with environmental research and education, working through ensembles, students and fellow researchers.
Timeline
Key moments
An interdisciplinary setting
Joined Simon Fraser University.
A book from the research
The Tuning of the World.
Death
A legacy in composition and acoustic ecology.
Learning beyond a single institution
Raymond Murray Schafer was born in Sarnia, Ontario, in 1933. Piano and choral singing formed part of his early musical life. At the University of Toronto he studied piano with Alberto Guerrero and composition with John Weinzweig. His education was interrupted by expulsion, an experience he later recounted with humour.
He travelled to Europe, studying languages and exploring other composers’ work. After returning to Canada, he helped establish the Ten Centuries Concerts with colleagues including Harry Somers and Gordon Delamont. His interests already crossed composing, performance, research and writing.
Teaching and a collective research project
Schafer joined Simon Fraser University in 1965. Its interdisciplinary setting gave room for his experiments in music education and study of the surrounding sound environment. The World Soundscape Project grew from this work.
Its activity depended on a team. Bruce Davis and Peter Huse made a cross-Canada recording tour; Barry Truax developed research and terminology, and Hildegard Westerkamp became an important practitioner and organiser in acoustic ecology. The Vancouver and European studies combined recordings with descriptions and analysis. Schafer’s The Tuning of the World followed in 1977.
Composing for places and performers
Environmental inquiry also informed his composing. Patria developed into a linked music-theatre cycle, while works for voices, instruments and outdoor settings asked performers and audiences to engage with particular places. His practice was broader than collecting environmental sounds.
The intimate string quartet and larger choral works offered other settings for that exploration. The Fall into Light, written in 2002–2003, returned in part to the church music of his childhood. Research and composition could feed each other without becoming the same activity.
A continuing field of work
Schafer died in 2021. Institutional remembrances recognised his theatre, multimedia and choral work alongside outdoor compositions. The field he helped build continued through other composers and researchers: Truax’s handbook and acoustic-communication work, Westerkamp’s practice and international networks, and further studies of changing environments.
Quick answers
Frequently asked questions about R. Murray Schafer
- Was the project a solo recording enterprise?
- No. Named composers, researchers and students shared its work.
Keep exploring
Lives connected to this story
- Pauline Oliveros
How can another listening practice organise a learner’s attention?
- Evelyn Glennie
What should a performer’s account say about the cues available?
Sources and further reading
Explore the evidence
These references support the biography and offer further reading. Official records, first-person accounts and independent reporting provide different perspectives; image records document attribution and licensing.
- 1. Library and Archives CanadaR. Murray Schafer fonds
- 2. Institute for Music in Canada, University of Toronto, 16 August 2021R. Murray Schafer (1933–2021)
- 3. Simon Fraser University, Early Arts historyWorld Soundscape Project
Project recordings were not heard; the written institutional history was read.
- 4. Royal Conservatory of Music, 17 August 2021In Memoriam: R. Murray Schafer
