William G. James

William Garnet James (28 August 1892 – 10 March 1977) was an Australian pianist and composer and a pioneer of music broadcasting in Australia. Early years James was born in Ballarat in 1892. He studied piano at the Melbourne University Conservatorium, graduating in 1912. On the recommendation of the visiting pianist Teresa Carreño, he headed overseas to study in London and Brussels with Arthur De Greef, a former pupil of Franz Liszt and Camille Saint-Saëns. It is around this period that James composed his Six Australian Bush Songs, which were dedicated to, and performed by, Dame Nellie Melba. After being rejected for military service, James worked for the British Red Cross during the World War I. In 1915, he made his public debut as a pianist with the Queen’s Hall Orchestra. By this time he had begun to publish his compositions, and in 1916 his ballet music By Candlelight was performed in concert at the Savoy Theatre, London. ABC career In 1923 James returned to Australia, in company with Stella Power, eventually taking up a teaching position at the Melbourne University Conservatorium. In the late 1920s, he joined the newly formed Australian Broadcasting Company, the forerunner of