BBC National Orchestra of Wales
Encyclopedia
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's five professional orchestras. The BBC NOW is the only professional symphony orchestra organisation in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, occupying a dual role as both a broadcasting orchestra
Radio orchestra
A radio orchestra is an orchestra employed by a radio network in order to provide programming as well as sometimes perform incidental or theme music for various shows on the network. In the heyday of radio such orchestras were numerous, performing classical, popular, light music and jazz...
and national orchestra.
The BBC NOW has its administrative base in Cardiff, at the BBC Hoddinott
Alun Hoddinott
Alun Hoddinott CBE , was a Welsh composer of classical music, one of the first to receive international recognition.-Life and works:...
Hall on the site of the Wales Millennium Centre
Wales Millennium Centre
Wales Millennium Centre is an arts centre located in the Cardiff Bay area of Cardiff, Wales. The site covers a total area of . Phase 1 of the building was opened during the weekend of the 26–28 November 2004 and phase 2 opened on 22 January 2009 with an inaugural concert...
, since January 2009. The BBC NOW is the orchestra-in-residence at St David's Hall
St David's Hall
St David's Hall is a performing arts and conference venue in the heart of Cardiff city centre, the capital of Wales...
, Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, and also performs regularly throughout Wales and beyond, including international tours and annual appearances at the Royal Albert Hall
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
in London at the BBC Proms. Broadcasting work includes studio sessions for 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...
and television, although the orchestra’s concerts form the bulk of its broadcasts, transmitted primarily on BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
but also on BBC Radio Wales
BBC Radio Wales
BBC Radio Wales is the BBC's national radio station broadcasting to Wales in the English language. Operated by BBC Wales, it began broadcasting on 12 November 1978 following the demise of the old "Radio 4 Wales" when BBC Radio 4 became a national network and moved from medium wave to long wave...
, BBC Radio Cymru
BBC Radio Cymru
BBC Radio Cymru is BBC Cymru's Welsh-language radio station, broadcasting throughout Wales from studios in Cardiff, Bangor, and Aberystwyth on FM since 1977. At the time of its launch it was one of the few FM-only radio services in the UK...
and BBC television
BBC Television
BBC Television is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The corporation, which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927, has produced television programmes from its own studios since 1932, although the start of its regular service of television...
.
History
The precursor ensemble of the BBC NOW was the Cardiff Station Orchestra, which was founded in 1928. Funding problems resulted in the disbandment of this orchestra in 1931. In 1935, the BBC Welsh Orchestra was established as a 20-member ensemble, but the orchestra was dissolved in 1939. After World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the BBC Welsh Orchestra was revived as a 31-member ensemble, with Mansel Thomas
Mansel Thomas
Mansel Treharne Thomas OBE was a composer and conductor, who worked mainly in south Wales. He was one of the most influential musicians of his generation, known as a composer, conductor and adjudicator. He was for many years employed by the BBC and promoted the careers of many composers and...
as its first principal conductor. In 1947, the BBC Welsh Chorus was founded as the affiliate chorus of the orchestra. The orchestra's ensemble size increased steadily, reaching 44 musicians in the 1960-1961 season, 60 musicians in 1974, and 66 musicians in 1976, until it reached a full symphonic complenent of 88 players in 1987, when the orchestra's name was changed to the BBC Welsh Symphony Orchestra. In the 1970s, a new chorus to supplant the former BBC Welsh Chorus, the BBC Welsh Choral Society, was established. In 1993, the orchestra was renamed the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, to reflect more suitably its special role as both a national orchestra and a BBC Performing Group. In parallel, the chorus was renamed the BBC National Chorus of Wales. Both the orchestra and the chorus engage in education and community work through their RESOUND/ATSAIN department, which creates access to the players and singers for Welsh schools, groups, communities and musicians of all abilities.
Thierry Fischer
Thierry Fischer is a Swiss orchestra conductor and flutist.Fischer studied flute with Aurèle Nicolet and began his musical career as Principal Flute in Hamburg and at the Zurich Opera, where he studied scores with Nikolaus Harnoncourt...
, since September 2006. He is scheduled to conclude his BBC NOW tenure after the 2011-2012 season. Jac van Steen
Jac van Steen
Jac van Steen is a Dutch conductor. He studied music theory, as well as orchestral and choral conducting, at the Brabants Conservatory of Music....
is the BBC NOW's current principal guest conductor, since 2005. Tadaaki Otaka
Tadaaki Otaka
is a Japanese-born, British-based conductor. He studied composition, theory, and French horn, at the Toho Gakuen School of Music, and later was a conducting student of Hideo Saito....
, principal conductor from 1987 to 1995, is currently the BBC NOW's conductor laureate. Since 2008, François-Xavier Roth
François-Xavier Roth
François-Xavier Roth is a French conductor. His father is the organist Daniel Roth. His brother Vincent Roth is a violist. Before turning to conducting, Roth was a flutist...
has held the title of associate guest conductor of the BBC NOW. Richard Hickox
Richard Hickox
Richard Sidney Hickox CBE was an English conductor of choral, orchestral and operatic music.-Early life:Hickox was born in Stokenchurch in Buckinghamshire into a musical family...
, principal conductor from 2000 to 2006, was the orchestra's conductor emeritus until his death in November 2008. In July 2011, the BBC NOW announced the appointment of Thomas Søndergård
Thomas Søndergård
Thomas Søndergård is a Danish orchestra conductor and percussion player. He studied percussion and timpani at the Royal Danish Academy of Music from 1989 to 1992, where his teachers included Gert Mortensen. From 1989 to 1992, Søndergård was a timpanist in the European Union Youth Orchestra. He...
as its 14th principal conductor, effective with the 2012-2013 season, for an initial contract of 4 years. Simon Holt
Simon Holt
Simon Holt is a British composer.-Biography:Holt was educated at Bolton School. Shortly after graduating from the Royal Northern College of Music, he became firmly established on the new music circuit with a series of commissions and fruitful collaborations with the London Sinfonietta and the Nash...
is the BBC NOW's current Composer-in-Association, since 2008. Adrian Partington is the current artistic director of the BBC National Chorus of Wales.
Discography
In addition to its recording work for the BBC, the BBC National Orchestra of Wales has an extensive commercial discography with such labels as Chandos and Hyperion. These include recorded cycles of music of Lennox BerkeleyLennox Berkeley
Sir Lennox Randal Francis Berkeley was an English composer.- Biography :He was born in Oxford, England, and educated at the Dragon School, Gresham's School and Merton College, Oxford...
and Michael Berkeley
Michael Berkeley
Michael Berkeley is a British composer and broadcaster on music.-Early life:His father was the composer Sir Lennox Berkeley...
, Frank Bridge
Frank Bridge
Frank Bridge was an English composer and violist.-Life:Bridge was born in Brighton and studied at the Royal College of Music in London from 1899 to 1903 under Charles Villiers Stanford and others...
, and Edmund Rubbra
Edmund Rubbra
Edmund Rubbra was a British composer. He composed both instrumental and vocal works for soloists, chamber groups and full choruses and orchestras. He was greatly esteemed by fellow musicians and was at the peak of his fame in the mid-20th century. The most famous of his pieces are his eleven...
. Selections of the BBC NOW's discography include:
- Tippett: The Rose Lake; Ritual Dances from The Midsummer Marriage [CHSA 5039]
- Elgar: Symphony No 2; In The South (Alassio) [CHSA 5038]
- Sullivan: Trial by Jury; Cox and Box [CHSA 10321]
- Bridge: Orchestral Works, Vol. 6 [CHAN 10310]
- Walton: Christopher Columbus; Hamlet and Ophelia [CHSA 5034]
World Premieres
The orchestra has premiered numerous works, including:- 1996 Anthony PowersAnthony Powers-Life:Born in London, England, he took private tuition with Elisabeth Lutyens and Harrison Birtwistle between 1969 and 1971, and also with Nadia Boulanger in Paris from 1972 to 1973. Between 1973 and 1976 he went to the University of York, where he studied with Blake David and Bernard Rands , to...
'Symphony No. 1' - 2004 Alun HoddinottAlun HoddinottAlun Hoddinott CBE , was a Welsh composer of classical music, one of the first to receive international recognition.-Life and works:...
'Trombone Concerto', soloist Mark EagerMark EagerMark Eager is an English-born conductor and former BBC National Orchestra of Wales Principal Trombone. He lives in Salisbury, United Kingdom.-Biography:... - 2010 Arvo PärtArvo PärtArvo Pärt is an Estonian classical composer and one of the most prominent living composers of sacred music. Since the late 1970s, Pärt has worked in a minimalist style that employs his self-made compositional technique, tintinnabuli. His music also finds its inspiration and influence from...
'In spe' - 2010 Arlene SierraArlene SierraArlene Sierra is an American composer working in the United Kingdom.She studied at Oberlin College, Yale University and the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, receiving a DMA in 1999; among her principal teachers were Martin Bresnick, Michael Daugherty and Jacob Druckman...
Piano Concerto, ‘Art of War’ - 2010 Simon HoltSimon HoltSimon Holt is a British composer.-Biography:Holt was educated at Bolton School. Shortly after graduating from the Royal Northern College of Music, he became firmly established on the new music circuit with a series of commissions and fruitful collaborations with the London Sinfonietta and the Nash...
'Centauromachy', soloists Philippe Schartz flugelhornFlugelhornThe flugelhorn is a brass instrument resembling a trumpet but with a wider, conical bore. Some consider it to be a member of the saxhorn family developed by Adolphe Sax ; however, other historians assert that it derives from the valve bugle designed by Michael Saurle , Munich 1832 , thus...
and Robert Plane clarinetClarinetThe clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed... - March 2011 Christopher Painter 'Furnace of Colours'
Principal Conductors
- Warwick BraithwaiteWarwick BraithwaiteHenry Warwick Braithwaite was a New Zealand-born orchestra conductor. He worked mostly in Great Britain and was especially known for his work in opera....
(1928–1931) - Reginald Redman (1931–1935)
- Idris Lewis (1935–1939)
- Mansel ThomasMansel ThomasMansel Treharne Thomas OBE was a composer and conductor, who worked mainly in south Wales. He was one of the most influential musicians of his generation, known as a composer, conductor and adjudicator. He was for many years employed by the BBC and promoted the careers of many composers and...
(1946–1950) - Rae Jenkins (1950–1965)
- John Carewe (1966–1971)
- Boris BrottBoris BrottBoris Brott, OC, O.Ont is a Canadian conductor and motivational speaker.Born in Montreal, the son of violinist and composer Alexander Brott and cellist Lotte Brott, and brother of cellist Denis Brott....
(1972–1978) - Bryden ThomsonBryden ThomsonBryden Thomson was a Scottish conductor.Bryden Thomson was born in Ayr. He led several British orchestras, including the BBC Northern Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Welsh Symphony Orchestra and the Ulster Orchestra from 1977 to 1985...
(1979–1982) - Erich BergelErich BergelErich Bergel was a conductor from Transylvania .-Professional career:Bergel was a flutist of the Hermannstädter Philharmoniker age 18. From 1950 to 1955 he studied conducting, organ and composition at the Gheorghe Dima Music Academy of Cluj-Napoca...
(1983–1985) - Tadaaki OtakaTadaaki Otakais a Japanese-born, British-based conductor. He studied composition, theory, and French horn, at the Toho Gakuen School of Music, and later was a conducting student of Hideo Saito....
(1987–1995) - Mark WigglesworthMark WigglesworthMark Wigglesworth is a British conductor. Wigglesworth has served as associate conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, as musical director of the Opera Factory of London, and music director of the BBC National Orchestra of Wales...
(1996–2000) - Richard HickoxRichard HickoxRichard Sidney Hickox CBE was an English conductor of choral, orchestral and operatic music.-Early life:Hickox was born in Stokenchurch in Buckinghamshire into a musical family...
(2000–2006) - Thierry FischerThierry FischerThierry Fischer is a Swiss orchestra conductor and flutist.Fischer studied flute with Aurèle Nicolet and began his musical career as Principal Flute in Hamburg and at the Zurich Opera, where he studied scores with Nikolaus Harnoncourt...
(2006–incumbent)
Composers in Association
- Michael BerkeleyMichael BerkeleyMichael Berkeley is a British composer and broadcaster on music.-Early life:His father was the composer Sir Lennox Berkeley...
(2001–2008) - Simon HoltSimon HoltSimon Holt is a British composer.-Biography:Holt was educated at Bolton School. Shortly after graduating from the Royal Northern College of Music, he became firmly established on the new music circuit with a series of commissions and fruitful collaborations with the London Sinfonietta and the Nash...
(2008–incumbent)