Willy Redstone

Willy (or Willie) Redstone (24 September 1883 – 30 September 1949) was a French composer and conductor of light music who had a substantial career in England and Australia, where he became music editor for the ABC.

History Redstone (originally Rottenstein) was born in Paris, a nephew of the composer Charles Gounod (his mother was a half-sister). and cousin of Albert Carré, director of the Paris Opéra-Comique. His parents were in Paris as refugees from Strasbourg, which had fallen to Germany in 1870.

He trained in Paris to be an engineer, but was more interested in music. He was four years at the Paris Conservatoire, on a scholarship won through his talent as a pianist. His first composition, at the age of 20, was a light opera which ran at the Théâtre des Arts for thirty weeks in 1905, setting his future as a writer of light music.

He was also in demand by theatre directors in Paris and London as a conductor, arranger and orchestrator. For Georges Gabriel Thenon he wrote the revue À perte de revue (1906), staged at the Théâtre du Palais-Royal starring Paul Ardot, the operetta Le Trou d'Almanzor (1907) at the Théâtre des Arts. He was commissioned to write a three-act burlesque on Edmond Rostand's Chantecler,

England Redstone wrote some music for the Tiller Girls, who were at the time performing in Paris. This led to an invitation by John Tiller to visit his dance school in Manchester, and incidentally married one of his star performers.

Australia In 1922 he was appointed musical director for Hugh J. Ward, who was about to tour Australia with The O'Brien Girl, starting with his new Princess Theatre, Melbourne, which ran for 202 performances, and Tangerine for 101. Ward had purchased the rights to the play Tons of Money, which fared poorly in Melbourne, but recast as a musical with numbers by Redstone to lyrics by Vaib Solomon it was well received and had long seasons there and in Sydney's Grand Opera House.

His next project as musical director was No, No, Nanette, the first musical he conducted for which he did not contribute any original work. He exercised this facility for the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.

Redstone, Lindley Evans and Alfred Hill composed the score for Charles Chauvel's 1940 film Forty Thousand Horsemen. and was also involved in Chauvel's Rats of Tobruk (1944) alongside Lindley Evans and Charles Mackerras. He also composed the score for Lee Robinson's 1949 documentary Crocodile Hunters, commissioned by the Department of Information. Perhaps his most famous work in this period was an arrangement of John Brown's Body. His last completed work was The Sphinx, a ballet suite for orchestra. He was currently engaged on a musical "Life of Christ" with one Oscar Walters.

Family Willy Redstone was born Charles Willy Adolphe Rottenstein in Paris on 24 September 1883, a son of Johann Baptist (or Jean Baptiste) Rottenstein and Jeanne Marie Marguerite Baretty. Redstone married Florence Annie Osborne, an accomplished dancer and comedienne, George John Frederick Redstone (born in France 23 June 1914) married June Lorraine Johnson in 1940. His arrangement of Advance Australia Fair was recorded by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, conductor Henry Krips on 4 May 1968. Laurette Jeanne Redstone married Thomas John Collins (born Deniliquin 21 May 1925) Wesley Redstone (born in Melbourne 12 June 1923), Tony Redstone Jacqueline Redstone They had a home at Pacific Street, Watsons Bay, later at 21 Fairweather Street, Bellevue Hill.