Gareth Walters
Encyclopedia
Gareth Walters is a well-established contemporary composer who was born in Swansea, Wales, and completed his early education there. As a schoolboy, he began to compose, and he received early encouragement from the famous English
composer
, conductor
and pianist
, Benjamin Britten
, who was a frequent guest at his family home. The English composer's visits were related to his preparations for the first recording of A Ceremony of Carols, for which Walters's father had suggested a local boys’ choir in Morriston.
In 1949, Gareth Walters entered the Royal Academy of Music
, and after three years he was awarded a Royal College of Music scholarship to the Conservatoire National in Paris, where he continued his studies with Jean Rivier
and Olivier Messiaen
in the early 1950s, inheriting a formal elegance that has been a characteristic of his music ever since. Walters then travelled to Italy to study at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana
in Siena. While on his second period of study there in 1954, he received the offer of a teaching post in the Junior Exhibitioner section of the Royal Academy of Music in London.
Gareth Walters returned to England to join the teaching staff of the Royal Academy of Music, and, two years later, he was appointed as a Producer in the Music Department of the BBC in London. He held both appointments for much of his professional life until 1988. Since then, as well as composition, his activities have included extended periods of examining (for the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music) and organising various concert series, including the annual Gower Festival in South Wales.
Gareth Walters' Divertimento for String Orchestra was his first work to appear on record, in 1970, although he had composed it in 1960. Played by the English Chamber Orchestra, and conducted by David Atherton, the piece has subsequently been recorded on three other occasions: in 2002 by the Royal Ballet Sinfonia for ASV, in 2003 by the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra
for CBC, and most recently in 2007 by the Orquestra de Cambra Terrassa in Barcelona. Other works that have been recorded are Sinfonia Breve (1964), Elegy – a poem for string orchestra (1969), Overture: Primavera (1962), Gwent Suite (1959), Little Suite for Harp (recorded on a ‘Classics for Pleasure’ LP and re-issued on CD in 1998), Capriccio for guitar (1980), Two Harpsichord Suites and Two Elizabethan Suites (both of the latter appearing on a KPM LP in 1969).
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, conductor
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
and pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
, Benjamin Britten
Benjamin Britten
Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten, OM CH was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He showed talent from an early age, and first came to public attention with the a cappella choral work A Boy Was Born in 1934. With the premiere of his opera Peter Grimes in 1945, he leapt to...
, who was a frequent guest at his family home. The English composer's visits were related to his preparations for the first recording of A Ceremony of Carols, for which Walters's father had suggested a local boys’ choir in Morriston.
In 1949, Gareth Walters entered 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...
, and after three years he was awarded a Royal College of Music scholarship to the Conservatoire National in Paris, where he continued his studies with Jean Rivier
Jean Rivier
Jean Rivier was a French composer of classical music.He composed over two hundred works, including music for orchestra, chamber groups, chorus, piano, and solo instruments....
and Olivier Messiaen
Olivier Messiaen
Olivier Messiaen was a French composer, organist and ornithologist, one of the major composers of the 20th century. His music is rhythmically complex ; harmonically and melodically it is based on modes of limited transposition, which he abstracted from his early compositions and improvisations...
in the early 1950s, inheriting a formal elegance that has been a characteristic of his music ever since. Walters then travelled to Italy to study at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana
Accademia Musicale Chigiana
The Accademia Musicale Chigiana is a music institute in Siena, Italy. It was founded by Count Guido Chigi Saracini in 1932 as an international centre for advanced musical studies. It organises Master Classes in the major musical instruments as well as singing, conducting and composition...
in Siena. While on his second period of study there in 1954, he received the offer of a teaching post in the Junior Exhibitioner section of the Royal Academy of Music in London.
Gareth Walters returned to England to join the teaching staff of the Royal Academy of Music, and, two years later, he was appointed as a Producer in the Music Department of the BBC in London. He held both appointments for much of his professional life until 1988. Since then, as well as composition, his activities have included extended periods of examining (for the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music) and organising various concert series, including the annual Gower Festival in South Wales.
Gareth Walters' Divertimento for String Orchestra was his first work to appear on record, in 1970, although he had composed it in 1960. Played by the English Chamber Orchestra, and conducted by David Atherton, the piece has subsequently been recorded on three other occasions: in 2002 by the Royal Ballet Sinfonia for ASV, in 2003 by the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra
Manitoba Chamber Orchestra
The Manitoba Chamber Orchestra is a chamber orchestra based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1972 by Ruben Gurevich, the ensemble's first music director, the MCO presents nine concerts annually at Westminster United Church and tours in rural Manitoba, Canada and elsewhere.The MCO...
for CBC, and most recently in 2007 by the Orquestra de Cambra Terrassa in Barcelona. Other works that have been recorded are Sinfonia Breve (1964), Elegy – a poem for string orchestra (1969), Overture: Primavera (1962), Gwent Suite (1959), Little Suite for Harp (recorded on a ‘Classics for Pleasure’ LP and re-issued on CD in 1998), Capriccio for guitar (1980), Two Harpsichord Suites and Two Elizabethan Suites (both of the latter appearing on a KPM LP in 1969).
List of Works
- Divertimento for String Orchestra
- Berceuse for harp
- Cân y galon (Song of the Heart), for soprano and string quartet
- Crown Imperial
- Overture: Primavera
- Iona
- Little Suite for Flute and Harp
- Poésies du soir (Poems of the Evening) for mezzo soprano and chamber ensemble
- Violin Sonata
- Two Harpsichord Suites (Music for the Court, and Court Dances)
- Two Elizabethan Suites