Chesney Palmer

About

Chesney is a pianist, educator and composer from South Africa with a keen interest in abstraction theories and the links between visual abstract art and music. He uses his multi-associative experiences to explore abstract art in personal way that emphasises textures, shapes, line and colour in music. He is currently a lecturer in music theory, aural skills and film music composition at Emendy Multimedia Institute. He has been commissioned to compose music for a contemporary dance production that is funded by The National Arts Council under the banner of Crossings. He has won the chamber music category of the international Clarinet Extravaganza hosted in Bloemfontein (2019) and has been featured in an international magazine, The Clarinet (2020). His more recent work includes international premiers of short dance films such as Passing Minute (2021) featured on Think Short (2021), Layered Waves (2021) premiered at the Film makers Festival (2021) and The Mobile Dance Festival (2021) as well as Neverland (2021) premiered at the International Jomba Dance Festival (2021). He has recently had a premier in Belgrade, Serbia at the Rossi Festival (2022). Recent work includes a commission for a dance production premiered in Toulouse (France), Tanzania and South Africa in co-production with New Dance Umbrella (South Africa) The Institute Français (Johannesburg), The National Arts Festival, Vrystaat Arts Festival, Les Bazis (France) and supported in Residency by the Centre National de la danse and Muda Africa. He is also an Arts in Medicine Fellow (2022).

Education

Publications