Iva Davies

Iva Davies is an Associate in Music Australia (Distinction) and a formally trained classical musician (oboe. Piano and composition).

Iva's first serious musical training was during high school. His outstanding potential as an oboist won him the first of a number of consecutive scholarships to the NSW State Conservatorium of Music where he continued tertiary studies in the Performer's Diploma Course.

During this time he performed extensively with professional ensembles, chamber groups, as a soloist and with the ABC National Training Orchestra, Elizabethan Trust Opera Orchestra, and Sydney Symphony Orchestra. Iva was a member of the orchestra which performed the first opera ever staged in the Sydney Opera House in 1974.

His parallel interest in popular music and ability as a guitarist singer/composer led, in 1977, to the formation of the Australian musical group Flowers, later known as Icehouse.

As leader and founder of Icehouse he has achieved substantial success both locally and internationally over a period of twenty years. Icehouse has produced, over that period, roughly thirty local hit songs and a number of European and American Top 20 hits (including international Number 1s). Among these are his seminal Australian anthem Great Southern Land as well such well known songs as Hey Little Girl, Crazy, Electric Blue, We can get together and No Promises. Album sales are presently approaching two million in Australasia alone.

His most recent song "Circles in the Sky" was recently selected as a theme for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Celebrations.

Iva has also accumulated awards including nine multi-platinum recordings and multiple awards from ARIA (Australian Record Industry Association), APRA (Australian Performing Rights Association), ASCAP (USA Writers and Performers Association), Ampex Gold Record Awards, "Mo", Variety Club and many others.

He has performed extensively throughout the USA, UK, Europe and Japan. Highlights among these include Madison Square Gardens in New York, the Australian Bi-Centential Royal Command Performance, the opening of the Adelaide Festival of Arts, and the launching of the Olympic Live Sites ŒTorch Concert' from the Sydney Domain this year.

Among his solo projects are the filmscore to the Russell Mulchay feature "Razorback", an AFI finalist APRA award winner and two acclaimed ballet scores for the Sydney Dance Company.
In 1985 the ballet score "Boxes" was commissioned by Graeme Murphy and the resulting work conceived by Iva Davies, Robert Kretschmer and Graeme Murphy opened on 5th November 1985, and achieved local and international recognition.
In 1995 Iva was once again invited by Graeme Murphy to create an original score in collaboration with Max Lambert for a new dance work titled "Berlin". The complete "Berlin" score includes a number of songs by other recognised composers, arranged by Iva Davies and Max Lambert. "Berlin", in which Iva performed as a singer, enjoyed considerable success in Australia and internationally during 1995, and returned to the Sydney Opera House by public demand in 1997. That year the soundtrack CD subsequently became an ARIA finalist.

"The Ghost of Time" was commissioned in 1999 to be the centrepiece of the City of Sydney Millennium Celebrations. The 25 minute piece based on "Great Southern Land" was performed by Iva and virtuoso violinist Richard Tognetti along with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and Taikoz in the minutes before midnight from the Sydney Opera House to 3 billion international viewers. The soundtrack won ARIA Award the last presentations held in 2000.

In 2001 Iva has had the honour of being appointed as a New South Wales Centenary of Federation Envoy along with a number of other notable Australians including former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam.

At present Iva is engaged in composing and producing recordings for a number of newly emerging local and international artists, principally in the area of contemporary electronic dance music.