Larry Sitsky, Brian Castles-Onion, Anthony Warlow and Michelle Leonard are recognised in the Australia Day Honours.

Emeritus Professor Larry Sitsky AM has been made an Officer (AO) of the Order of Australia in the 2017 Australia Day Honours List.

^{Larry Sitsky. Photo: courtesy of the ABC}

Sitsky, now 82, was honoured for “distinguished service to the arts as a composer and concert pianist, to music education as a researcher and mentor, and through musical contributions to Australia’s contemporary culture.”

Born in 1934 in China to Russian Jewish emigrées, Sitsky arrived in Australia with his family at age 15 and settled in Sydney, where he initially studied engineering before turning to music. He studied piano at the Sydney Conservatorium with Winifred Burston and then won a scholarship to the San Francisco Conservatory where he studied for two years with Egon Petri.

Sitsky was a founding member of the Canberra School of Music in 1965, which later became the Australian National University (ANU) School of Music where he held the positions of Head of Composition Studies, Head of Academic Studies, Head of Keyboard Studies and Emeritus Professor.

Sitsky co-founded the Composers’ Guild of Australia in...