Simon Holt
Simon Holt(born 21 February 1958) is an English composer.
Biography
[edit]Simon Holt was born inBolton,Lancashire on 21 February 1958. Educated atBolton School,Holt immersed himself in organ, piano and visual art during his sixth form years. In 1976, he attended Bolton College of Art for a year where he fulfilled a foundation course in all areas of visual representation. Shortly before achieving a diploma in composition from theRoyal Northern College of Music,where he studied withAnthony Gilbertfor four years from 1978 to 1982, he received a commission from theLondon Sinfonietta,which becameKites(1983). He was soon firmly established with a series of commissions and fruitful collaborations including not only with the Sinfonietta, but also theNash Ensembleand theBirmingham Contemporary Music Group,resulting in pieces such aseco-pavan(1998),Sparrow Night(1989) andLilith(1990) respectively. Inspired byMessiaen,XenakisandFeldmanas well as visual artists such asGoya,Alberto GiacomettiandBrâncuși,his music is innately dramatic and impulsive in nature. His output comprises chamber music, concertos, songs, opera, orchestral and piano music.
From 2000 onwards, Holt has written several concertos and orchestral pieces, includinga table of noises(2007), a percussion concerto forColin Currie.Holt was Composer in Association with theBBC National Orchestra of Walesfrom 2008 to 2014, working closely with the conductorThierry Fischeron pieces such asTroubled Light(2008) for orchestra andMorpheus Wakes(2011), a flute concerto written forEmmanuel Pahud,both for theBBC Proms.Previously, Holt had been commissioned to write two orchestral pieces for the BBC Proms;Syrensong(1987), his first orchestral piece, written for theBBC Symphony Orchestraand the viola concerto,walking with the river’s roar(1991), forNobuko Imaiand theBBC Philharmonic.Recent commissions include the orchestral piece,Surcos(2016), forSir Simon Rattleand theBerliner Philharmonikerand co-commissioned by theCity of Birmingham Symphony Orchestrawho gave the UK premiere with the conductorIlan Volkovand the basset clarinet concerto,Joy Beast(2016), forMark Simpsonand the BBC Philharmonic as part of the New Music Biennial 2017. Simon Holt's music has been recorded on several record labels, most extensively withNMC.
Holt is currently Professor of Composition at theRoyal College of Music.[1]
Career highlights
[edit]- 1978–82 – Studied at theRoyal Northern Collegeof Music withAnthony Gilbert[1]
- 1985 – Came to prominence as featured composer at the Bath Festival[1]
- 1989 – Royal Philharmonic Society Award forCapriccio Spettrale[2]
- 1998 – Featured composer atHuddersfield Contemporary Music Festival[1]
- 2001 – Le Prix de la Fondation Prince Pierre, Monaco forSunrise' yellow noise[3]
- 2002 – Ivor Novello Classical Music Award forBoots of Lead[1]
- 2004 – British Composer Award (Stage Works) forWho put Bella in the Wych elm?[4]
- 2006 – British Composer Award (Orchestral) forwitness to a snow miracle[4]
- 2008 – AppointedComposer in Associationwith theBBC National Orchestra of Wales[1]
- 2009 – British Composer Award (Orchestral) fora table of noises[4]
- 2011 – Week long residency at theRoyal College of Musicfeaturing several performances of orchestral and chamber music[5]
- 2015 –3rd Quartetwas premièred by theJACK QuartetatWigmore Halland the Internationales MusikfestivalHeidelberger Frühling[6][7]
- 2017 –Surcos,a co-commission from theBerliner Philharmoniker(conducted bySir Simon Rattle) andCBSO(withIlan Volkov), was performed three times in Berlin and opened the Berliner Philharmoniker's first appearance at theElbphilharmoniein Hamburg[1][8][9]
- 2017 – Basset clarinet concerto,Joy Beast,written forMark Simpsonand commissioned by the BBC, received four performances; premièred in Hull and then in London as part of the New Music Biennial 2017[10]
- 2018 – Featured at theAldeburgh Festivalwith a series of chamber pieces including two world premières[11][12]
Key works
[edit]- Maïastra(1981; flute solo)
- Kites(1983; chamber ensemble)
- Era madrugada(1984; chamber ensemble)
- Canciones(1986; mezzo-soprano and chamber ensemble)
- Syrensong(1987; orchestra)
- Sparrow Night(1989; solo oboe and chamber ensemble)
- Lilith(1990; small chamber ensemble)
- walking with the river’s roar(1991; viola concerto)
- Banshee(1994; oboe and percussion)
- Nigredo(1994; piano solo)
- The Nightingale’s to Blame(1996 to 1998; chamber opera)
- eco-pavan(1998; solo piano and chamber ensemble)
- feet of clay (2003; cello solo)
- witness to a snow miracle(2005; violin concerto)
- Sueños(2006; baritone and chamber ensemble)
- a table of noises(2007; percussion concerto)
- Troubled Light(2008; orchestra)
- Morpheus Wakes(2011; flute concerto)
- The Yellow Wallpaper(2011; soprano, 6 female singers and orchestra)
- Ellsworth 2(2012; orchestra)
- Fool is Hurt(2015; piccolo concerto)
- Joy Beast(2016; basset clarinet concerto)
- Surcos(2017; orchestra)
- Quadriga(2017; percussion and string quartet)
- Serra-Sierra(2018; cello and piano)
- 3 for Icarus:Icarus Lamentations(1992; 2 clarinets, cimbalom, harp and strings),Minotaur Games(1993; orchestra),Daedalus Remembers(1995; solo cello and chamber ensemble)
- a ribbon of time:Sunrise' yellow noise(1999; soprano and orchestra),Two movements for string quartet(2001),Boots of Lead(2002; mezzo-soprano and chamber ensemble),Clandestiny(2000; soprano and organ),startled Grass(2001; solo cello, 6 sopranos, 6 altos, harp, cimbalom and percussion)
- The Bella cycle:the sharp end of night(2003; violin solo),the other side of silence(2004; chamber ensemble),The Coroner’s Report(2004; chamber ensemble),Who put Bella in the Wych elm?(2003; music theatre, baritone, soprano, violin, piano and chamber ensemble)
- Terrain:String sextet: the torturer’s horse(2009),everything turns away(2010; piano and four string players),3rd Quartet(2013),Amapolas(2008; string trio),Telarañas(2009; violin and cello),Mantis(2005; solo viola)[13][14]
Selected recordings
[edit]- Canciones; Era madrugada; Shadow Realm; Sparrow Night– NMC D008
- Boots of Lead; eco-pavan; Kites; Lilith; feet of clay– NMC D094
- Tauromaquia; a book of colours; Black Lanterns; Klop's Last Bite; Nigredo– NMC D128
- Maïastra– Metier MSV CD92063
- a table of noises; St Vitus in the kettle; witness to a snow miracle– NMC D218
- 3rd Quartet– NMC D216
References
[edit]- ^abcdefg"Simon Holt".Wise Music Classical.Wise Music Group.Retrieved24 July2020.
- ^"Capriccio Spettrale".Wise Music Classical.Retrieved24 July2020.
- ^"Fondation Prince Pierre, Simon Holt".Fondation Prince Pierre de Monaco.Retrieved25 July2020.
- ^abc"The Ivors Academy | Champions of Music Creators".The Ivors Academy.Retrieved23 July2020.
- ^"Simon Holt, St. Vitus in the Kettle".YouTube, Royal College of Music.Archivedfrom the original on 21 December 2021.Retrieved25 July2020.
- ^Dammann, Guy (21 January 2015)."JACK Quartet review".The Guardian.Retrieved25 July2020.
- ^"String Quartet Festival".Heidelberger Frühling.Retrieved25 July2020.
- ^"Concert Calendar".Berliner Philharmoniker.Retrieved25 July2020.
- ^"Berlin Philharmonic, Sir Simon Rattle".Elbphilharmonie.7 May 2017.Retrieved25 July2020.
- ^"Composers and Commissions 2017".New Music Biennial.Retrieved25 July2020.
- ^"Aldeburgh Festival 2018".Snape Maltings.Retrieved25 July2020.
- ^"Aldeburgh Festival 2018 programme revealed".Rhinegold Publishing.Retrieved25 July2020.
- ^"Simon Holt Catalogue".Wise Music Classical.Retrieved25 July2020.
- ^The Music of Simon Holt,ed. David Charlton, Boydell (2017), Appendix A: Overview and catalogue of pieces, pp. 305–329.
External links
[edit]- Official website
- Simon Holt's homepage at Wise Music Classical
- "The Music of Simon Holt", edited by David Charlton, published by Boydell and Brewer
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
- 20th-century classical composers
- 21st-century classical composers
- Musicians from Manchester
- Musicians from the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton
- People educated at Bolton School
- English classical composers
- 1958 births
- Living people
- English male classical composers
- 20th-century English composers
- 21st-century English composers
- 20th-century British male musicians
- 21st-century British male musicians