Andrew Downes (composer)
Encyclopedia
Andrew Downes is a British
classical
composer
.
Downes was born in Handsworth
, Birmingham
. In 1969, he won a choral scholarship to St. John's College, Cambridge, where he gained an MA
degree specializing in composition, and in 1974 went on to study with Herbert Howells
at the Royal College of Music
. Downes was Head of the School of Composition and Creative Studies at Birmingham Conservatoire from 1992 until 2005, when he retired due to ill health.
Andrew Downes' music has been performed throughout the world, in many leading concert halls and cathedrals, and has been broadcast on BBC Radio
s 2, 3 & 4, BBC TV, ‘France Musique’, Italian TV, Austrian Radio, Dutch Radio, Czech Radio and Central Peking Radio. 17 CDs have been made of his music.
His commissions have included The Marshes of Glynn for the Royal opening of the Adrian Boult Hall
in Birmingham in 1986; Centenary Fire Dances for the City of Birmingham’s Centenary Festival of Fireworks and Music; an Overture for the Three Choirs Festival; songs for the Cantamus Girls Choir
; song cycles for mezzo-soprano Sarah Walker and tenor John Mitchinson for broadcast on BBC Radio 3; anthems for the BBC Radio 4 Daily Service; Sonata for 8 Horns for the Horn Octet of the University of New Mexico
; Suite for 6 Horns for the Vienna Horn Society; Song of the Eagle for the James Madison University
Flute Choir of Virginia; Concerto for Two Pianos for the Duo Scaramouche; Sonata for 8 Pianists for soloists from France, Italy and Britain; Mela Kamavardhani for performances by Indo-Jazz Fusions in Calcutta, Delhi and Bombay; Fanfare for Madam Speaker, for the Installation of the Rt Hon Betty Boothroyd
MP as Chancellor of the Open University
in 1994; Concerto for Two Guitars for Simon Dinnigan and Fred T. Baker
with Strings from the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
; Concert Overture 'Towards a New Age' for the 150th anniversary of the British Institution of Mechanical Engineers, premiered in Symphony Hall, Birmingham
, by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
; and Suite for Brass Sextet for the Czech Philharmonic Brass Sextet.
As a result of the success of the CD recording of his Sonata for 8 Horns by the Horns of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra
, Andrew was commissioned to compose a Concerto for 4 Horns and Orchestra for the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, who gave two performances of the work in the Dvorak Hall, Prague
, in February and March 2002. In March 2003, the work was recorded for broadcast by Czech Radio. Andrew returned to Prague in October 2005 to hear a performance by the Czech Philharmonic Horns of his 5 Dramatic Pieces for 8 Wagner Tubas.
Recent projects have included Songs of Autumn and Songs of the Skies, (both commissioned by Symphony Hall Birmingham, premiered in 2003 and 2005 respectively with 1200 children and players from the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
and the Central England Ensemble); Songs of Love for Paula Downes and David Trippett, (world premiere at University Hall, Harvard University
Cambridge, Mass. USA on 1 February 2007); Sonata for Organ (premiered by Robert Green at St David's Cathedral, Pembrokeshire, Wales on 22 August 2007); the opera, Far from the Madding Crowd
, premièred at the Thomas Hardy
Festival in July 2006; Mass for Unaccompanied Solo Voice, premiered by soprano Paula Downes at the MIT Chapel, Boston, Massachusetts, USA on 6 March 2008; Sonata for Horn, Violin and Piano for the Brahms Trio Prague (Monica Vrabcová, violin; Ondrej Vrabec, [principal Horn Czech Philharmonic Orchestra
] and Daniel Wiesner, piano), premiered at the Suk Hall, Rudolfinum, Prague
on 5 February 2008 (a CD of this work has now been released on the Czech Philharmonic Artesmon label);Finished Fields, a setting of four poems by Wilfred Owen
commissioned by Jonathan Pugsley (bass-baritone) and Duncan Honeybourne
(piano)and premiered in Weymouth, Dorset on 12 November 2008; Concerto for Piano and Orchestra for pianist Duncan Honeybourne
and the Central England Ensemble, conducted by Anthony Bradbury in Birmingham Town Hall on 1 March 2009, and given again by the same artists in Coventry Cathedral
in July 2010; Sonata for Contrabass Flute and Piano for Peter Sheridan, premiered in 2009 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; and Sonata for Clarinet and Piano for clarinettist Angus Merion and Duncan Honeybourne
, premiered in Salisbury, UK in January 2010.
Current projects include Concerto for Horn and Symphony Orchestra for Ondrej Vrabec (Principal Horn Czech Philharmonic Orchestra
)and the Central England Ensemble, to be premiered in Birmingham UK in 2012, a commission from the Francis Brett Young
society to compose a work based on Young’s poem, The Ballad of St Kenelm, to be premiered in Halesowen
(the poet’s birthplace) in 2015, and a new work for solo piano for Duncan Honeybourne
.
Faber Music
include Andrew Downes' motet O Vos Omnes in their compilation entitled Thirty Choral Masterworks for Upper Voices.
Andrew Downes is a Life Fellow of the RSA and of the International Biographical Association, Honourary Fellow of Birmingham Conservatoire, and President of the Central Composers' Alliance and Leading Patron
of the Midland Chamber Players.
He has a wife, Cynthia, two daughters, Anna and Paula (both married), two grandsons, Oscar and Maxwell and a grandaughter, Persephone.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
classical
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
.
Downes was born in Handsworth
Handsworth, West Midlands
Handsworth is an inner city area of Birmingham in the West Midlands, England. The Local Government Act 1894 divided the ancient Staffordshire parish of Handsworth into two urban districts: Handsworth and Perry Barr. Handsworth was annexed to the county borough of Birmingham in Warwickshire in 1911...
, Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
. In 1969, he won a choral scholarship to St. John's College, Cambridge, where he gained an MA
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
degree specializing in composition, and in 1974 went on to study with Herbert Howells
Herbert Howells
Herbert Norman Howells CH was an English composer, organist, and teacher, most famous for his large output of Anglican church music.-Life:...
at the Royal College of Music
Royal College of Music
The Royal College of Music is a conservatoire founded by Royal Charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, England.-Background:The first director was Sir George Grove and he was followed by Sir Hubert Parry...
. Downes was Head of the School of Composition and Creative Studies at Birmingham Conservatoire from 1992 until 2005, when he retired due to ill health.
Andrew Downes' music has been performed throughout the world, in many leading concert halls and cathedrals, and has been broadcast on BBC Radio
BBC Radio
BBC Radio is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927. For a history of BBC radio prior to 1927 see British Broadcasting Company...
s 2, 3 & 4, BBC TV, ‘France Musique’, Italian TV, Austrian Radio, Dutch Radio, Czech Radio and Central Peking Radio. 17 CDs have been made of his music.
His commissions have included The Marshes of Glynn for the Royal opening of the Adrian Boult Hall
Adrian Boult Hall
The Adrian Boult Hall is the main concert hall of the Birmingham Conservatoire in central Birmingham, England. It is named after the conductor Adrian Boult....
in Birmingham in 1986; Centenary Fire Dances for the City of Birmingham’s Centenary Festival of Fireworks and Music; an Overture for the Three Choirs Festival; songs for the Cantamus Girls Choir
Cantamus Girls Choir
The Cantamus Girls Choir is a choir based in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire and consists of approximately forty girls aged between thirteen and nineteen. The choir was founded in 1968 by Pamela Cook , Geoffrey Thompson , Sheila Haslam and Ivan Haslam .Michael Neaum became the accompanist in 1976...
; song cycles for mezzo-soprano Sarah Walker and tenor John Mitchinson for broadcast on BBC Radio 3; anthems for the BBC Radio 4 Daily Service; Sonata for 8 Horns for the Horn Octet of the University of New Mexico
University of New Mexico
The University of New Mexico at Albuquerque is a public research university located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in the United States. It is the state's flagship research institution...
; Suite for 6 Horns for the Vienna Horn Society; Song of the Eagle for the James Madison University
James Madison University
James Madison University is a public coeducational research university located in Harrisonburg, Virginia, U.S. Founded in 1908 as the State Normal and Industrial School for Women at Harrisonburg, the university has undergone four name changes before settling with James Madison University...
Flute Choir of Virginia; Concerto for Two Pianos for the Duo Scaramouche; Sonata for 8 Pianists for soloists from France, Italy and Britain; Mela Kamavardhani for performances by Indo-Jazz Fusions in Calcutta, Delhi and Bombay; Fanfare for Madam Speaker, for the Installation of the Rt Hon Betty Boothroyd
Betty Boothroyd
Betty Boothroyd, Baroness Boothroyd, OM, PC is a British politician, who served as Member of Parliament for West Bromwich and West Bromwich West from 1973 to 2000, initially for the Labour Party and, from 1992 to 2000, as Speaker of the House of Commons...
MP as Chancellor of the Open University
Open University
The Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom...
in 1994; Concerto for Two Guitars for Simon Dinnigan and Fred T. Baker
Fred Thelonious Baker
Fred Thelonious Baker is an English guitarist and bass guitarist from Tibshelf, Derbyshire. He is known for playing in Phil Miller's Canterbury scene band In Cahoots....
with Strings from the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra is a British orchestra based in Birmingham, England. The Orchestra's current chief executive, appointed in 1999, is Stephen Maddock...
; Concert Overture 'Towards a New Age' for the 150th anniversary of the British Institution of Mechanical Engineers, premiered in Symphony Hall, Birmingham
Symphony Hall, Birmingham
Symphony Hall is a 2,262 seat concert venue located inside the International Convention Centre in Birmingham, England. It was officially opened by the Queen in June 1991, although had been opened on April 15, 1991. It is home to the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and hosts around 270 events...
, by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It tours widely, and is sometimes referred to as "Britain's national orchestra"...
; and Suite for Brass Sextet for the Czech Philharmonic Brass Sextet.
As a result of the success of the CD recording of his Sonata for 8 Horns by the Horns of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra
Czech Philharmonic Orchestra
The Česká filharmonie is a symphony orchestra based in Prague and is the best-known and most respected orchestra in the Czech Republic.- History :...
, Andrew was commissioned to compose a Concerto for 4 Horns and Orchestra for the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, who gave two performances of the work in the Dvorak Hall, Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, in February and March 2002. In March 2003, the work was recorded for broadcast by Czech Radio. Andrew returned to Prague in October 2005 to hear a performance by the Czech Philharmonic Horns of his 5 Dramatic Pieces for 8 Wagner Tubas.
Recent projects have included Songs of Autumn and Songs of the Skies, (both commissioned by Symphony Hall Birmingham, premiered in 2003 and 2005 respectively with 1200 children and players from the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra is a British orchestra based in Birmingham, England. The Orchestra's current chief executive, appointed in 1999, is Stephen Maddock...
and the Central England Ensemble); Songs of Love for Paula Downes and David Trippett, (world premiere at University Hall, Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
Cambridge, Mass. USA on 1 February 2007); Sonata for Organ (premiered by Robert Green at St David's Cathedral, Pembrokeshire, Wales on 22 August 2007); the opera, Far from the Madding Crowd
Far from the Madding Crowd
Far from the Madding Crowd is Thomas Hardy's fourth novel and his first major literary success. It originally appeared anonymously as a monthly serial in Cornhill Magazine, where it gained a wide readership. Critical notices were plentiful and mostly positive...
, premièred at the Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy, OM was an English novelist and poet. While his works typically belong to the Naturalism movement, several poems display elements of the previous Romantic and Enlightenment periods of literature, such as his fascination with the supernatural.While he regarded himself primarily as a...
Festival in July 2006; Mass for Unaccompanied Solo Voice, premiered by soprano Paula Downes at the MIT Chapel, Boston, Massachusetts, USA on 6 March 2008; Sonata for Horn, Violin and Piano for the Brahms Trio Prague (Monica Vrabcová, violin; Ondrej Vrabec, [principal Horn Czech Philharmonic Orchestra
Czech Philharmonic Orchestra
The Česká filharmonie is a symphony orchestra based in Prague and is the best-known and most respected orchestra in the Czech Republic.- History :...
] and Daniel Wiesner, piano), premiered at the Suk Hall, Rudolfinum, Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
on 5 February 2008 (a CD of this work has now been released on the Czech Philharmonic Artesmon label);Finished Fields, a setting of four poems by Wilfred Owen
Wilfred Owen
Wilfred Edward Salter Owen MC was an English poet and soldier, one of the leading poets of the First World War...
commissioned by Jonathan Pugsley (bass-baritone) and Duncan Honeybourne
Duncan Honeybourne
Duncan Honeybourne is an English pianist, teacher and lecturer.Honeybourne began his studies at the Royal Academy of Music Junior Department, where he won the senior piano prize. He gave his first London recital at the age of fifteen and toured extensively throughout Britain as solo recitalist and...
(piano)and premiered in Weymouth, Dorset on 12 November 2008; Concerto for Piano and Orchestra for pianist Duncan Honeybourne
Duncan Honeybourne
Duncan Honeybourne is an English pianist, teacher and lecturer.Honeybourne began his studies at the Royal Academy of Music Junior Department, where he won the senior piano prize. He gave his first London recital at the age of fifteen and toured extensively throughout Britain as solo recitalist and...
and the Central England Ensemble, conducted by Anthony Bradbury in Birmingham Town Hall on 1 March 2009, and given again by the same artists in Coventry Cathedral
Coventry Cathedral
Coventry Cathedral, also known as St Michael's Cathedral, is the seat of the Bishop of Coventry and the Diocese of Coventry, in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The current bishop is the Right Revd Christopher Cocksworth....
in July 2010; Sonata for Contrabass Flute and Piano for Peter Sheridan, premiered in 2009 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; and Sonata for Clarinet and Piano for clarinettist Angus Merion and Duncan Honeybourne
Duncan Honeybourne
Duncan Honeybourne is an English pianist, teacher and lecturer.Honeybourne began his studies at the Royal Academy of Music Junior Department, where he won the senior piano prize. He gave his first London recital at the age of fifteen and toured extensively throughout Britain as solo recitalist and...
, premiered in Salisbury, UK in January 2010.
Current projects include Concerto for Horn and Symphony Orchestra for Ondrej Vrabec (Principal Horn Czech Philharmonic Orchestra
Czech Philharmonic Orchestra
The Česká filharmonie is a symphony orchestra based in Prague and is the best-known and most respected orchestra in the Czech Republic.- History :...
)and the Central England Ensemble, to be premiered in Birmingham UK in 2012, a commission from the Francis Brett Young
Francis Brett Young
Francis Brett Young was an English novelist, poet, playwright, and composer.-Life:Brett Young was born in Halesowen, Worcestershire. He schooled first at a private school in Sutton Coldfield...
society to compose a work based on Young’s poem, The Ballad of St Kenelm, to be premiered in Halesowen
Halesowen
Halesowen is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands, England.The population, as measured by the United Kingdom Census 2001, was 55,273...
(the poet’s birthplace) in 2015, and a new work for solo piano for Duncan Honeybourne
Duncan Honeybourne
Duncan Honeybourne is an English pianist, teacher and lecturer.Honeybourne began his studies at the Royal Academy of Music Junior Department, where he won the senior piano prize. He gave his first London recital at the age of fifteen and toured extensively throughout Britain as solo recitalist and...
.
Faber Music
Faber Music
Faber Music is a British sheet music publisher best known for contemporary classical music. It also publishes music tutor books, and in 2005 acquired popular music publisher International Music Publications....
include Andrew Downes' motet O Vos Omnes in their compilation entitled Thirty Choral Masterworks for Upper Voices.
Andrew Downes is a Life Fellow of the RSA and of the International Biographical Association, Honourary Fellow of Birmingham Conservatoire, and President of the Central Composers' Alliance and Leading Patron
of the Midland Chamber Players.
He has a wife, Cynthia, two daughters, Anna and Paula (both married), two grandsons, Oscar and Maxwell and a grandaughter, Persephone.