Oliver Kentish
Encyclopedia
Oliver John Kentish is a British-born cellist, tutor, and composer, living in Reykjavik
, Iceland
, moving there in 1977 and being granted Icelandic nationality in 1989. Kentish composes orchestral, choral, vocal, and chamber music
.
In addition to composition, Kentish has been the Artistic Director of the Iceland Amateur Symphony Orchestra (Sinfóníuhljómsveit áhugamanna) since 2005.
Kentish was commissioned by the British Government in 1993 to write the work Mitt Folk which was performed by the Iceland Symphony Orchestra and is dedicated to Vigdís Finnbogadóttir
. The work commemorates the 50th anniversary of Iceland as a republic and was a gift from Britain to Iceland.
Much of Kentish's current work (2008) is for the countertenor
Sverrir Guðjónsson.
His work Prelude and Fugue for 10 violas was premiered in the United Kingdom at the Purcell Room
in London
on 30 November 2008.
Reykjavík
Reykjavík is the capital and largest city in Iceland.Its latitude at 64°08' N makes it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói Bay...
, Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, moving there in 1977 and being granted Icelandic nationality in 1989. Kentish composes orchestral, choral, vocal, and chamber music
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
.
In addition to composition, Kentish has been the Artistic Director of the Iceland Amateur Symphony Orchestra (Sinfóníuhljómsveit áhugamanna) since 2005.
Kentish was commissioned by the British Government in 1993 to write the work Mitt Folk which was performed by the Iceland Symphony Orchestra and is dedicated to Vigdís Finnbogadóttir
Vigdís Finnbogadóttir
Vigdís Finnbogadóttir is an Icelandic politician who served as the fourth President of Iceland from 1980 to 1996. In addition to being both Iceland's and Europe's first female president, she was the world's first democratically elected female head of state...
. The work commemorates the 50th anniversary of Iceland as a republic and was a gift from Britain to Iceland.
Much of Kentish's current work (2008) is for the countertenor
Countertenor
A countertenor is a male singing voice whose vocal range is equivalent to that of a contralto, mezzo-soprano, or a soprano, usually through use of falsetto, or far more rarely than normal, modal voice. A pre-pubescent male who has this ability is called a treble...
Sverrir Guðjónsson.
His work Prelude and Fugue for 10 violas was premiered in the United Kingdom at the Purcell Room
Purcell Room
The Purcell Room is a concert and performance venue which forms part of the Southbank Centre, one of central London's leading cultural complexes. It is named after the 17th century English composer Henry Purcell and has 370 seats....
in 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...
on 30 November 2008.
Selected works
- Jakobslag, Little Duet for viola and marimba (1999)
- Draumar og dansar (Dreams and Dances) for viola and chamber orchestra (2002)
- Prelúdía og fúga (Prelude and Fugue) for 10 violas (2005)
- Kvinnan fróma for viola and piano (2008)