William Alwyn

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William Alwyn CBE (born November 7, 1905 in Northampton , † September 11, 1985 in Southwold ) was a British composer .

Life

Alwyn began studying flute (with Daniel Wood ) and composition (with John Blackwood McEwen ) at the London Royal Academy of Music at the age of fifteen . In 1926 (at the age of 21) he was given a professorship for composition there, which he held until 1955; his students included Iain Hamilton and John Manduell . In 1927 Henry Wood conducted Alwyns Five Preludes . From 1927 Alwyn was also principal flutist with the London Symphony Orchestra for some time . In 1949, 1950 and 1954 he served as chairman of the British composers' association. From 1958 to 1971 Alwyn was director of the Mechanical Copyright Protection Society. In addition to his musical activities, Alwyn worked as a linguist, poet and painter. In 1978 he received the Commander of the British Empire award . William Alwyn was married to the composer Doreen Carwithen until his death in 1985 .

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His compositional work is diverse and extensive. It includes five symphonies, four operas, several concerts, string quartets and over 70 film scores ; the best known are those for the films Odd Man Out , Desert Victory , Fires Were Started and The Red Corsair, as well as for a number of Walt Disney productions. Alwyn's Concerto for Harp and String Orchestra Lyra Angelica became famous for the fact that figure skater Michelle Kwan backed her performance at the 1998 Winter Olympics with it . His manuscripts and private archive are part of the Cambridge University Library .

Compositions (selection)

Operas

  • 1922: The Fairy Fiddler
  • 1955: Farewell Companions (radio opera)
  • 1971: Juan or the Libertine
  • 1977: Miss Julie

Symphonies

  • 1949: Symphony No. 1
  • 1953: Symphony No. 2
  • 1956: Symphony No. 3
  • 1959: Symphony No. 4
  • 1973: Symphony No. 5 'Hydriotaphia'

Concerts

  • 1930: Piano Concerto No. 1
  • 1936: Tragic interlude for 2 horns, timpani and string orchestra
  • 1938: Violin Concerto
  • 1939: Pastoral fantasia for viola and string orchestra
  • 1943: Concerto grosso No. 1 in B flat major
  • 1945: Concerto for oboe, harp and strings
  • 1954: Autumn legend for cor anglais and string orchestra
  • 1954: Lyra angelica, concerto for harp and string orchestra
  • 1960: Piano Concerto No. 2

Film music

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ William Alwyn Archive ( Memento of 23 September 2011 at the Internet Archive ) on the website of the Cambridge University Library

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Alwyn, William
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English composer
DATE OF BIRTH November 7, 1905
PLACE OF BIRTH Northampton
DATE OF DEATH September 11, 1985
Place of death Southwold , England