Hugh Wood

For the English cricketer, see Hugh Wood (cricketer).

Hugh Wood (born 27 June 1932, Parbold, UK) is a British composer.

Biography

While Wood was brought up in a musical family, it was only after graduating in History from New College, Oxford that he decided to dedicate his energies to composition; and he moved to London in 1954 to study with William Lloyd Webber, Anthony Milner, Iain Hamilton, and Mátyás Seiber. Sometimes violently expressionistic, sometimes poignantly lyrical, his music is powerfully communicative and intensely felt, although when exploring lighter moods, such as in the jazzy Piano Concerto, his writing is equally eloquent. He typically prefers chamber music genres, though several of his large-scale works, such as his Symphony and Violin Concerto, are amongst his most striking. In recent years he has contributed several articles on music to The Times Literary Supplement. In 2007 his collected writings on music, 'Staking Out the Territory' was published by Plumbago Books and the following year Ashgate Books published 'The Music of Hugh Wood' by Edward Venn.

Career highlights

• 1965 - highly acclaimed Proms premiere of BBC commission Scenes from Comus.
• 1969 - Proms premiere of Cello Concerto, commissioned by the BBC.
• 1982 - Proms premiere of Symphony by the BBC Symphony Orchestra.
• 1998 - UK premiere of Variations for Orchestra at Last Night of the Proms.
• 1999 - Serenade and Elegy premiered at Cheltenham Festival.
• 2001 - The Lindsays premiere String Quartet No 5 in Sheffield.

Key works

• Variations for viola and piano, Op 1 (1958)
• Trio for flute, viola and piano, Op 3 (1961)
• Scenes from Comus, Op 6 (1962–1965)
• Cello Concerto, Op 12 (1965–1969)
• Chamber Concerto for large ensemble, Op 15 (1971)
• Violin Concerto No.1, Op 17 (1970–1972)
• Song Cycle to Poems of Pablo Neruda for high voice and chamber orchestra, Op 19 (1973–1974)
• String Quartet No 3, Op 20 (1978)
• Symphony, Op 21 (1982)
• Piano Trio, Op 24 (1982–1984)
• Horn Trio, Op 29 (1989)
• Cantata for chorus and orchestra, Op 30 (1989)
• Piano Concerto, Op 32 (1991)
• Variations for Orchestra, Op 39 (1994–1997)
• Wild Cyclamen, Op 49 (2005–2006)
• Violin Concerto No.2, Op 50 (2003–2004)
• Michael Berkeley Tribute for viola solo (2004)
• Divertimento for Strings, Op 51 (2007)
• Clarinet Quintet, Op 53 (2007)
• Beginnings: Three Early Songs for soprano and strings, Op 54 (2010)

Recordings

• Clarinet Trio - Divine Art 25009
• The Kingdom of God - Hyperion CDA66758
• Overture; Variations Op.1; Paraphrase on 'Bird of Paradise'; Poem; Clarinet Trio; Piano Trio - Toccata Classics TOCC0075
• Scenes from Comus; Symphony - NMC D070
• String Quartet Nos 1-4 - Conifer 75605 51239-2
• String Quartet Nos 2 & 3; The Horses; The Rider Victory - Lyrita SRCD.304
• Violin Concerto; Cello Concerto - NMC D082

External links

• Hugh Wood's homepage at Chester Music
• 2002 interview with Hugh Wood for Classical Source
• Staking Out the Territory and Other Writings on Music, a collection of articles and essays by Hugh Wood.