Anthony Gilbert
Professional
Biography
Anthony Gilbert was born in London in 1934. Initially a translator and interpreter by profession, he came to compositon late, studying first with Matyas Seiber, then with Anthony Milner and Alexander Goehr at Morley College, London, and later with Gunther Schuller at Tanglewood.
He first attracted public attention in the 1960s with a series of brilliant virtuoso works for small ensembles, performed in the international festivals. Notable among these are Brighton Piece and Nine or Ten Osannas, now commerically available on CD, and, for members of 'Fires of London', Spell Respell for Bassett Clarinet and Piano, and The Incredible Flute Music. During this time he began a close association with Schotts publishers, working his way up from warehouseman to chief editor of contemporary music.
Leaving London for the North of England in 1970, first as Granada Arts Fellow at Lancaster University and then to teach composition at the Royal Northern College of Music, he devoted the next 10 years to writing larger works. These included an acclaimed Symphony, Ghost and Dream Dancing for orchestra and two operas: The Scene-Machine for Staatstheater Kassel and The Chakravaka-Bird, a BBC Jubilee commission. Among works for contemporary chamber orchestra, his Crow Cry for the London Sinfonietta and Towards Asavari for solo piano and chamber orchestra - a BBC commission for Peter Lawson and the Manchester Camerata - attracted particular attention.
During the 1980s, largely as a result of periods of work in Australia, he focused once again on compositions featuring solo performer - of these, Moonfaring for cello and percussion has been particularly often performed as a concert piece and with dancers, and is now available on a CD of works performed by Psappha, Manchester's leading contemporary ensemble. A good deal of his work during the late 80s was for the virtuoso recorder player John Turner, and included the extraordinary concerto Igorochki. From this period also date Dream Carousels for wind, Gilbert's most performed work, and the beautiful orchestra song-cycle Certain Lights Reflecting, both inspired by poems of the Australian poet Sarah Day. This productive decade also included two string quartets. The third, subtitled super hoqueto David, is another frequently-played work, now commercially issued on CD.
In the 1990s Gilbert again concentrated on virtuoso pieces, this time featuring percussion. Ziggurat, for percussion and bass clarinet, commissioned by the Duo Contemporain, made a particularly strong impression. Further architecturally-inspired works followed, notably two relating to the great rose windows of Chartres Cathedral: Reflexions, Rose Nord, also for the Duo Contemporain, and Os for oboe and vibraphone, commissioned by Melinda Maxwell and Fiona Ritchie. The major work this decade has been his acclaimed Violin Concerto, On Beholding a Rainbow, commissioned by the BBC and first performed in January 1999 by Anthony Marwood and the BBC Philharmonic, conducted by Rumon Gamba. Currently he is completing a song-cycle for Alison Wells and Psappha, to words by Aloysius Bertrand.
Anthony Gilbert was Head of Composition and Contemporary Music at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester until his retirement in 1999.
Contact details:
Principal publishers:
Schott & Co. Ltd., 48 Great Marlborough St., London W1V 2BN, UK
Tel: (+44) (0)207 437 1426
Fax: (+44) (0)207 437 0263
The University of York Music Press, Dept. of Music, Heslington, York YO10 5DD, UK
Tel: (+44) (0)1904 432434
Fax: (+44) (0)1904 432450
Principal record label:
NMC Recordings Ltd., Francis House, Francis Street, London SW1P 1DE, UK
Tel/fax: (+44) (0)207 828 3432
E-mail: nmc@nmcrec.co.uk
| Important Works |
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Performances |
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- The Scene-Machine (Das Popgeheuer), opera in 1 Act, op.18 (1970) - 50'
Staatstheater Kassel commission
Text: George Macbeth
Mezzo, tenor, baritone, narrator, chorus, orchestra
Schott
- Symphony, op.22 (1972/85) - 39'
Cheltenham Festival commission
2(2pic).2(ca).3(Ebcl.bcl)2sax.2(2cbn)-4.2(flhn).2-timp-5perc-elorg.egtr-str.
Schott
- Ghost and Dream Dancing, op.25, symphony in 4 movements (1974/81) - 19'
Feeney Trust commission
3(pic).3(2ca).3(Ebcl.bcl).2(2cbn)-4.3(flhn).3.1-timp-3perc-cel.hp-str.
Schott
- The Chakravaka-Bird, radio opera (1977) - 77'
Text: Indian sources, trans. A.K.Ramanujan, Daniel H.H.Ingalls, A.Gilbert
Mezzo, counter-tenor, high tenor, heldentenor, altofl., accordion, cimbalom, 5-6 perc.
BBC/University of York Music Press
- Towards Asavari, concerto for piano and chamber orch. (1978) - 20'
BBCl commission
Solo piano + 1(pic).0.1(Ebcl).1-1.1.0.0-perc-str (6.6.4.4.2 players)
Schott
- Certain Lights Reflecting, orch. song-cycle (Sarah Day) (1988-9) - 19'
Arts Council Award
Sopr. or mezzo + 2(2pic).2(obd'am,ca).2(bcl)2(cbn)-4.2.3.0-timp-3perc-cel.hp-str.
Schott
- Dream Carousels, wind orch. (1988) - 12'
Arts Council Award
3(pic).2(bcl0)2asax.2tsax.barax.2-4.3.3.euph.1.-3perc-db
Schott
- Tree of Singing Names, chamber orch. (1989) - 18'
Manchester Camerata commission
1(pic).1(ca).1(bcl).1(cbn)-2.1.0.0-perc-str(6.0.6.4.2 players)
Schott
- Igorochki, concerto for recorder player and chamber ensemble (1991-2) - 17'
Manchester Camerata commission
Solo rec. (sopranino, des., treble, ten., bs) + 2perc.cimbalom-gtr-str qtet
Schott
- On Beholding a Rainbow, concerto for violin and orchestra (1992-7) - 30'
BBC commission
Solo violin + 2(pic).2(obd'am,ca).2(Ebcl.bscl)2(cbn)-4.2(flhn).0.0-2perc-pno.hp-str(4.4.3.3.2 dsks)
University of York Music Press
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