Justin Connolly
Encyclopedia
Justin Connolly is a British composer and teacher.
He was educated at Westminster School
, and then briefly studied law at the Middle Temple
before deciding on a career in music. He studied with Peter Racine Fricker
at the Royal College of Music
, graduating with a BMus degree, and then travelled to Yale University
in the USA on a Harkness Fellowship in the late 60s, where he studied with Mel Powell
. He then briefly taught at Yale before returning to the UK. He taught for many years at the Royal College of Music
, later moving to the Royal Academy of Music
, retiring from teaching in 1995. He currently lives in Greenwich
in the south-east area of greater London
.
His music is characterised by an outwardly modernist idiom, although Connolly professes a strong affinity with the music of the nineteenth century. His style is glittering, sometimes pointillist, and is often concerned with the interplay of complex and detailed textures. His music is rigorously crafted and often explores ideas related to philosophy, literature and history.
Works include a brass quintet Cinquepaces, two Sonatinas for piano solo, concertos for viola, organ and piano (the latter the result of a BBC
commission premièred in 2004), four vocal cycles setting the poetry of Wallace Stevens
, and a number of instrumental chamber pieces. His music is published by Novello & Co (Music Sales
).
Highly regarded as a teacher, his former students include the British composers Alwynne Pritchard
and Andrew McBirnie
.
He was educated at Westminster School
Westminster School
The Royal College of St. Peter in Westminster, almost always known as Westminster School, is one of Britain's leading independent schools, with the highest Oxford and Cambridge acceptance rate of any secondary school or college in Britain...
, and then briefly studied law at the Middle Temple
Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers; the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn and Lincoln's Inn...
before deciding on a career in music. He studied with Peter Racine Fricker
Peter Racine Fricker
Peter Racine Fricker was an English composer who lived in the United States for the last thirty years of his 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...
, graduating with a BMus degree, and then travelled to Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
in the USA on a Harkness Fellowship in the late 60s, where he studied with Mel Powell
Mel Powell
Mel Powell was a jazz pianist and composer of classical music.Mel Epstein was born to Russian Jewish parents, Milton Epstein and Mildred Mark Epstein, and began playing piano as a child. He performed jazz professionally in New York City as a teenager...
. He then briefly taught at Yale before returning to the UK. He taught for many years 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...
, later moving to the Royal Academy of Music
Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music in London, England, is a conservatoire, Britain's oldest degree-granting music school and a constituent college of the University of London since 1999. The Academy was founded by Lord Burghersh in 1822 with the help and ideas of the French harpist and composer Nicolas...
, retiring from teaching in 1995. He currently lives in Greenwich
Greenwich
Greenwich is a district of south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich.Greenwich is best known for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich Meridian and Greenwich Mean Time...
in the south-east area of greater London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
His music is characterised by an outwardly modernist idiom, although Connolly professes a strong affinity with the music of the nineteenth century. His style is glittering, sometimes pointillist, and is often concerned with the interplay of complex and detailed textures. His music is rigorously crafted and often explores ideas related to philosophy, literature and history.
Works include a brass quintet Cinquepaces, two Sonatinas for piano solo, concertos for viola, organ and piano (the latter the result of a BBC
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...
commission premièred in 2004), four vocal cycles setting the poetry of Wallace Stevens
Wallace Stevens
Wallace Stevens was an American Modernist poet. He was born in Reading, Pennsylvania, educated at Harvard and then New York Law School, and spent most of his life working as a lawyer for the Hartford insurance company in Connecticut.His best-known poems include "Anecdote of the Jar",...
, and a number of instrumental chamber pieces. His music is published by Novello & Co (Music Sales
Music Sales
Music Sales Group is Europe's largest printed music publisher, with headquarters in Berners Street, London. It owns the rights to hundreds of thousands of songs, imprints both for books and sheet music, operates the UK's largest chain of music shops, and sells sheet music, instruments and...
).
Highly regarded as a teacher, his former students include the British composers Alwynne Pritchard
Alwynne Pritchard
Alwynne Pritchard is a British composer and broadcaster, and is currently the Festival Director of Borealis Contemporary Music Festival.-Biography:...
and Andrew McBirnie
Andrew McBirnie
Andrew McBirnie is a British composer, educator and administrator.He studied at the University of Bristol with Adrian Beaumont and at the Royal Academy of Music with Justin Connolly, gaining a PhD in Composition from the University of London. He also studied at Tanglewood with Henri Dutilleux,...
.
External links
- Justin Connolly website
- Page at Chester Novello website – contains photograph, biography and list of works
- Night Thoughts is the title of a recent CD of a range of Connolly's music.