Respected maestro Geoff Harvey, best known for the Midday show, has died, aged 83.

Harvey joined the Nine Network in 1961 on Bob Rogers’ Tonight Show.

In 1963, he was appointed the musical director of Tonight with Dave Allen and then worked on The John Laws Show, Tonight Show with Charlie Brill and Mitzi McCall, Bandstand, Barry Crocker’s Sound of Music and The Don Lane Show.

But it was during The Mike Walsh Show that he became most widely known, as part of the on-air troupe, dabbling in comedy. A gifted arranger and advocate of live music, he remained with the show in its new incarnation Midday, under hosts Ray Martin, Derryn Hinch and Kerri-Anne Kennerley. It was a mammoth output of live music, all under Harvey’s baton, day after day.

He composed the theme songs for A Current Affair, Today, Sunday and The Sullivans.

From 1984 to 2002, he was the musical director of Carols by Candlelight and later was a recipient of the Medal of the Order of Australia for “service to the community as a musician and entertainer, and through support for charitable organisations”.

Harvey was most recently touring the live show Senior Moments with Lex Marinos, Max Gilles, Benita Collings and John Wood.

Nine CEO Hugh Marks said, “Geoff Harvey was a man of enormous talent as a musician and an entertainer. He was funny and generous entertaining Australians as the Musical Director of choice on so many of our programs across the decades alongside the likes of Kerri-Anne Kennerley, Don Lane, Ray Martin and Mike Walsh. As musical director at Nine he was the composer of memorable themes for A Current Affair and Today Show. Our condolences go out to his family and close friends at this sad time.”

The man behind the songbook of Australian television – Geoff Harvey – has died aged 83. @MarkWBurrows #9News pic.twitter.com/FLBtxoPhq7 — Nine News Melbourne (@9NewsMelb) March 30, 2019

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