Composers
Malcolm Arnold
|
Born: 1921
Died: 2006
Brief Biography: Arnold began his career as a professional trumpeter, but by the time he was thirty he was composing full-time, being bracketed with Britten and Walton as one of the most sought-after composers in Britain. His natural melodic gift has earned him a reputation as a composer of light music in works such as the sets of English, Scottish and Welsh Dances, or the scores to the St Trinian’s films and Hobson’s Choice. However many of his concertos and symphonies are profound, affording the listener a deeper insight into a fascinating and complex musical personality.
For a complete biography, click here.
Key Works:- Symphony No 2
(1953) - Tam O’Shanter - Overture
(1955; orchestra) - The Bridge on the River Kwai
(1957; orchestra or brass band) - Four Scottish Dances
(1957; orchestra or brass band) - Guitar Concerto (1959)
- Symphony No 5 (1961)
| Career Highlights:- 1948 Beckus the Dandipratt recorded by London Philharmonic Orchestra and Edward van Beinum
- 1953 Royal Ballet production of Homage to the Queen at Covent Garden
- 1958 won Academy Award for the music to The Bridge on the River Kwai
- 1984 moved to Norfolk, where he wrote his ninth symphony
- 1992 premiere of ninth symphony with BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and Sir Charles Groves
- 1993 knighted for Services to Music
|
Full Biography:
Sir Malcolm Arnold was born in Northampton on 21st October 1921. At the age of sixteen he won a scholarship to the Royal College of Music, London, studying the trumpet with Ernest Hall and composition with Gordon Jacob. From 1941 to 1948 he held the post of principal trumpet with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, with the interruption of two years military service during the war. Although acknowledged as one of the great trumpeters of the age, the need to express himself through composition finally demanded 100% of his time and from 1948 until the early 1960s Arnold's productivity was at its peak. With commissions pouring in at an ever-increasing rate; in the mid-fifties, Arnold was often bracketed with Benjamin Britten and William Walton as one of the most sought-after of the 'serious' composers in the country. His role as a conductor of his work, in the concert hall and in film and recording studios, also increased at this time.
One of the towering musical figures of the 20th century, Sir Malcolm Arnold has a remarkable catalogue of major concert works to his credit, including nine symphonies, seven ballets, two operas, one musical, over twenty concertos and two string quartets, as well as music for brass band and wind band. He has also written 132 film scores and among these are some of the finest works ever composed for the medium: 'Bridge on the River Kwai', 'Inn of the Sixth Happiness', 'Hobson's Choice'; 'Whistle down the Wind' and 'David Copperfield'.
In 1969 he was made a Bard of the Cornish Gorseth, and was awarded the CBE in 1970. He holds Honorary Doctorates of Music from Exeter University (1969), Durham University (1982), Leicester University (1984) and Northampton University (2006); he was made a Fellow of the Royal College of Music in 1983 and is an Honorary R.A.M. In 1986 (his 65th year) Malcolm Arnold received the Ivor Novello Award for 'Outstanding Services to British Music' and a knighthood in the 1993 New Year Honours List for his services to music. In 2005 he was awarded the Distinguished Musician Award for 2004 by the Incorporated Society of Musicians in recognition of his outstanding contribution to musical life.
Arnold's music springs directly from roots in dance and song. Typically, it is lucid in texture and clear in draughtsmanship. His lighter entertainment pieces, easy to listen to and rewarding to perform, are among the rare latter-day equivalents of eighteenth-century serenades and divertimenti. As an inventor of tunes, his power seems to be inexhaustible, and he is prodigal with his gifts; the 'big' tune in the modest little Toy Symphony, for example, is just as much a winner as the many memorable themes in the major concert works. Many of these are now firmly established in the concert repertory. Yet for those who have ears to hear, his works frequently give more than a hint of a complex musical personality and of dramatic tensions not far below the music's seductive surface. There is a scope in Arnold's music which reflects his profound concern with the human predicament and also his belief that music is "a social act of communication among people, a gesture of friendship, the strongest there is".
One of Sir Malcolm Arnold's most important and profound works in recent years is his Symphony No. 9. This was given its first performance by Sir Charles Groves and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra on 20th January 1992.
Sir Malcolm Arnold celebrated his 80th birthday on October 21st, 2001. To mark this special anniversary a number of celebratory concerts were planned throughout the year, including performances by the BBC Philharmonic of the complete cycle of the 9 symphonies, conducted by Ruman Gamba. Sir Malcolm's music also featured in festivals at Bromsgrove, Brancaster, Stratford (English Music Festival) King's Lynn, Malvern, Little Missenden and the Reichenau Concert Series (Germany) among many others. The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, conductor Douglas Bostock, gave a series of Arnold performances, culminating in an all-Arnold 80th birthday concert on Sunday October 21st at the Derngate Theatre, Northampton. Two concerts devoted to Sir Malcolm Arnold's chamber music, featuring many of this country's most distinguished musicians, took place on October 23 and 25 at the Wigmore Hall
Concerts abroad to mark the anniversary in 2001 included performances of Sir Malcolm's music in the Czech Republic, Japan, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark and the USA. In September 2001, the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra performed his Symphony no. 5 under their principle conductor Simone Young. The complete recordings of Sir Malcolm Arnold’s 9 symphonies were released in the same year on both Chandos Records and on Naxos.
In recent years, continuing interest in Arnold’s work has resulted in a number of biographies and a film about the composer. In 2003 Ashgate Press published Paul RW Jackson’s ‘The Life and Music of Sir Malcolm Arnold: The Brilliant and the Dark’. This was followed in 2004 by ‘Malcolm Arnold: Rogue Genius’ by Anthony Meredith and Paul Harris, published by Thames/Elkin. In the same year, Tony Palmer’s film portrait of the composer, ‘Toward the Unknown Region’ was screened at the Royal Festival Hall, and was broadcast shortly afterwards on ITV’s South Bank Show. Most recently, Raphael D Thöne's 'Malcolm Arnold - A Composer of Real Music: Symphonic Writing, Style and Aesthetics' was published by Entercom Saurus Records in 2007.
Sir Malcolm Arnold died on 23 September 2006.
External Websites
|
|
|
|