Pete Wilson (bass-player)
Encyclopedia
Pete Wilson is a bass guitar
ist who has been an exponent of the instrument in the UK contemporary music scene for twenty years. He also works as bass player in regular pop setting. He studied at Trinity College, London and gained a First Class BA (Hons) in Music from University of York
, followed by a DPhil on Charles Ives
researched at Yale University
(USA) in 1994.
He has appeared with the Icebreaker
, Steve Martland
Band (Factory Records), Ensemble Modern
with John Adams, the BBC Symphony Orchestra
, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
, London Sinfonietta
, and the American Composers Orchestra
(Carnegie Hall
). He has commissioned and performed a bass guitar concerto by composer Colin Riley.
Wilson also played bass for dance companies that include The Royal Ballet, Rambert Dance Company, London Contemporary Dance Theatre, Scottish Ballet
, Random Dance and Shobana Jeyasingh Dance Company. Pop credits include Sophie Ellis-Bextor
, Melanie C and Rufus Wainwright
.
Wilson has taught at Guildhall School of Music and Drama
, Dartington College of Arts
, University of York and headed the BA (Hons) programme at Brighton Institute of Modern Music
from its inception in 2003. He is Course Leader at Southampton Solent University
, an external examiner for University College Cork and University of Central England (UCE
Birmingham).
Pete’s research interests lie in the use of bass guitar in contemporary classical music.
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
ist who has been an exponent of the instrument in the UK contemporary music scene for twenty years. He also works as bass player in regular pop setting. He studied at Trinity College, London and gained a First Class BA (Hons) in Music from University of York
University of York
The University of York , is an academic institution located in the city of York, England. Established in 1963, the campus university has expanded to more than thirty departments and centres, covering a wide range of subjects...
, followed by a DPhil on Charles Ives
Charles Ives
Charles Edward Ives was an American modernist composer. He is one of the first American composers of international renown, though Ives' music was largely ignored during his life, and many of his works went unperformed for many years. Over time, Ives came to be regarded as an "American Original"...
researched at 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...
(USA) in 1994.
He has appeared with the Icebreaker
Icebreaker (band)
Icebreaker is a UK-based new music ensemble founded by James Poke and John Godfrey. The group have established themselves as one of the UK's leading new music interpreters specializing particularly in post-minimal and "totalist" repertoire. They always play amplified and have a reputation for...
, Steve Martland
Steve Martland
Steve Martland is an English composer.-Life and Music :Martland was born in Liverpool, England and studied composition at Liverpool University and in the Netherlands with Louis Andriessen...
Band (Factory Records), Ensemble Modern
Ensemble Modern
Ensemble Modern is a chamber ensemble dedicated to the music of modern composers. Formed in 1980, the group is based in Frankfurt, Germany and made up variously of about twenty members from numerous countries....
with John Adams, the BBC Symphony Orchestra
BBC Symphony Orchestra
The BBC Symphony Orchestra is the principal broadcast orchestra of the British Broadcasting Corporation and one of the leading orchestras in Britain.-History:...
, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It tours widely, and is sometimes referred to as "Britain's national orchestra"...
, London Sinfonietta
London Sinfonietta
The London Sinfonietta is an English chamber orchestra founded in 1968 and based in London. The ensemble specialises in contemporary music and works across a wide range of genres, performing modern classics alongside world premieres, and includes music by electronica artists as well as folk and...
, and the American Composers Orchestra
American Composers Orchestra
The American Composers Orchestra is an American orchestra based in New York City. It is the only orchestra in the world dedicated solely to the creation, performance, preservation, and promulgation of music by American composers...
(Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
). He has commissioned and performed a bass guitar concerto by composer Colin Riley.
Wilson also played bass for dance companies that include The Royal Ballet, Rambert Dance Company, London Contemporary Dance Theatre, Scottish Ballet
Scottish Ballet
Scottish Ballet is the national ballet company of Scotland and one of the four leading ballet companies of the United Kingdom, alongside the Royal Ballet, English National Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet...
, Random Dance and Shobana Jeyasingh Dance Company. Pop credits include Sophie Ellis-Bextor
Sophie Ellis-Bextor
Sophie Michelle Ellis-Bextor is an English singer, songwriter, model and occasional DJ. She first came to prominence in the late 1990s, as the lead singer of the indie rock band Theaudience. After the group disbanded, Ellis-Bextor went solo, achieving widespread success in the early 2000s...
, Melanie C and Rufus Wainwright
Rufus Wainwright
Rufus McGarrigle Wainwright is an American-Canadian singer-songwriter. He has recorded six albums of original music, EPs, and tracks on compilations and film soundtracks.-Early years:...
.
Wilson has taught at Guildhall School of Music and Drama
Guildhall School of Music and Drama
Guildhall School of Music and Drama is an independent music and dramatic arts school which was founded in 1880 in London, England. Students can pursue courses in Music, Opera, Drama and Technical Theatre Arts.-History:...
, Dartington College of Arts
Dartington College of Arts
Dartington College of Arts was a specialist arts institution near Totnes, Devon, South West England, it specialized in post-dramatic theatre, music, choreography, Performance Writing and visual performance, focusing on a performative and multi-disciplinary approach to the arts. In addition to this,...
, University of York and headed the BA (Hons) programme at Brighton Institute of Modern Music
Brighton Institute of Modern Music
BIMM Brighton & Bristol Institutes of Modern Music in England is an independent college of popular music based in the cities of Brighton & Hove and Bristol...
from its inception in 2003. He is Course Leader at Southampton Solent University
Southampton Solent University
Southampton Solent University is a university of 17,000 students based in Southampton, United Kingdom. Its main campus is located on East Park Terrace near the city centre....
, an external examiner for University College Cork and University of Central England (UCE
Birmingham City University
Birmingham City University is a British university in the city of Birmingham, England. It is the second largest of three universities in the city, the other two being the Aston University and University of Birmingham...
Birmingham).
Pete’s research interests lie in the use of bass guitar in contemporary classical music.
Recordings
Wilson has played for many ensembles and crossover projects, and recorded the listed ‘new music’ albums:- 1992 Steve Martland Band: “Crossing the Border”, FactoryFactoryA factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...
- 1993 Graham FitkinGraham FitkinGraham Fitkin is a British composer, pianist and conductor. His compositions fall broadly into the minimalist and postminimalist genres...
: “Hook/Mesh/Stub/Cud”, DeccaDecca RecordsDecca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
/Argo - 1994 Icebreaker: “Terminal Velocity”, Decca/Argo
- 1996 John GodfreyJohn Godfrey (composer)John Godfrey is a composer and performer, co-founder and musical director of Icebreaker , founder member of Crash Ensemble , founder of the Quiet Music Ensemble, and lecturer in music at National University of Ireland, Cork....
: “Euthanasia and Garden Implements”, New Tone - 1996 Michael GordonMichael Gordon (composer)Michael Gordon is an American composer and co-founder of the Bang on a Can festival and ensemble. His music is associated with the genres of totalism and post-minimalism.-Early life:...
/Icebreaker: “Trance”, Decca/Argo - 1997 Icebreaker: “Rogue's Gallery”, New Tone
- 1998 Opera Band: “Science Fictions”, Opera Band
- 2001 Diderik WagenaarDiderik WagenaarDiderik Wagenaar is a Dutch composer and musical theorist.-Life and work:Wagenaar has lived and worked all his adult life in The Hague. Born to a musical family that includes Johan Wagenaar, he began playing piano at the age of eight and by the time he was fourteen had set his sights on a musical...
: “Metrum/Rookery Hill”, DonemusDonemusDonemus is the Dutch institute dealing with the documentation of contemporary music composed in the Netherlands.... - 2001 Icebreaker: “Extraction”, BTL
- 2003 Michael Gordon/Icebreaker: “Trance”, Cantaloupe MusicCantaloupe MusicCantaloupe Music is a record label founded in March 2001 created by the three founders of New York's legendary Bang on a Can Festival: Michael Gordon, David Lang, and Julia Wolfe, and Bang on a Can Managing Director Kenny Savelson. Cantaloupe Music has made a massive impact in the new music...
(re-release) - 2004 Colin Riley: “Close”, SKMusic
- 2005 Icebreaker: “Cranial Pavement”, Cantaloupe Music
- 2005 Icebreaker: “Terminal Velocity”, Cantaloupe Music (re-release)
- 2007 Colin Riley: “Songs”, Squeaky Kate
- 2007 Philip GlassPhilip GlassPhilip Glass is an American composer. He is considered to be one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century and is widely acknowledged as a composer who has brought art music to the public .His music is often described as minimalist, along with...
/Icebreaker: “Music With Changing Parts”, Orange Mountain Music