# Percy Code

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{{Short description|Australian classical composer and musician (1888–1953)}}
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'''Edward Percival''' "'''Percy'''" '''Code''' (3 July 1888 – 16 October 1953)<ref name=ADB /> was an Australian classical [composer](/source/composer) and musician, specialising in [cornet](/source/cornet) and [trumpet](/source/trumpet). He is best known for his compositions for [brass band](/source/British_brass_band), including many solo works.

==Biography==
Percy Code was born in [Melbourne](/source/Melbourne), growing up in a musical family.<ref>Eriksen, Jan; ''The Golden Age of the Cornet'' [Ole Edvard Antonsen](/source/Ole_Edvard_Antonsen)/Royal Norwegian Navy Band; [BIS Records](/source/BIS_Records) 2007; BIS-SACD-1598</ref> His father, Edward Thomas Code, was a trumpeter who led his own ensemble, Code's Melbourne Brass Band. Percy learnt to play cornet and violin from his father, and played in his band. Aged 22 in 1910, he won the solo championship at the Royal South Street Competition in [Ballarat](/source/Ballarat). This saw him invited to England to play principal cornet with the [Besses o' th' Barn Band](/source/Besses_o'_th'_Barn_Band), where he played professionally for the next few years.

After returning to Australia, he conducted community bands in cities such as Ballarat.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.harrogateband.org/band-010.htm|website=harrogateband.org|title=History of the City of Ballarat Municipal Brass Band|access-date=2018-04-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090105223543/http://www.harrogateband.org/band-010.htm|archive-date=2009-01-05|url-status=dead}}</ref> He married Elsie Maude Miller in 1915, but the couple never had children, and lived apart for many years.<ref name=ADB>{{Cite Australian Dictionary of Biography|id2=code-edward-percival-5707|title=Edward Percival Code (1888–1953)|author=H. J. Gibbney|volume=8|year=1981}}</ref>

In 1921 Code moved to the United States, where he performed as a trumpeter with the [San Francisco Symphony Orchestra](/source/San_Francisco_Symphony_Orchestra) under the direction of [Alfred Hertz](/source/Alfred_Hertz). In San Francisco he also worked as a film composer and theatre pit musician. He returned to Australia in 1924, working as a radio music presenter, in addition to continuing to conduct and write music. From 1929 he worked as a conductor with the [ABC](/source/Australian_Broadcasting_Commission) until retiring in 1951.

Percy Code died in [Melbourne](/source/Melbourne) in 1953.

==Legacy==
Code's compositions are not well known outside the brass band community. However, amongst brass band music enthusiasts, he remains a respected figure, with his works featured in a Percy Code Memorial Solo contest held at multiple Australian brass band competitions.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lve.org.au/schedule/2018-schedule-v1.pdf|title=Schedule of sections|website=Latrobe Valley Eisteddfod|access-date=2018-04-12}}</ref>

His collected works were first recorded in their entirety by [euphonium](/source/euphonium) player and music academic Matthew van Emmerik in 2017.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-07-26/percy-code-music-legend-remembered-in-new-recording/8742174|title=Australia's long forgotten music legend Percy Code remembered in new recording|work=[ABC News (Australia)](/source/ABC_News_(Australia))|date=26 July 2017 |access-date=2018-04-11}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Code, Percy}}
Category:1888 births
Category:1953 deaths
Category:20th-century Australian classical composers
Category:Musicians from Melbourne

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Percy Code](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Percy_Code) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Percy_Code?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.