Hans Zimmer: The Battle Context Hans Zimmer was approached to compose the soundtrack for Ridley Scott’s popular film Gladiator in 2000. The film follows main character Maximus Decimus Meridius as he experiences slavery and seeks revenge on the corrupted leader Commodus. Zimmer’s music reflects this with bold orchestrations, memorable melodies Read more…
Elizabeth Maconchy: Nocturne for Orchestra Context Elizabeth Maconchy was born to Irish parents in Hertfordshire, 1907. After her birth, the family moved back to rural Ireland, where Maconchy began taking piano lessons. She started to compose her own music by age six and when she was in her late teens Read more…
Paul Hindemith: Symphonic Metamorphosis of Themes by Carl Maria von Weber Context Born in November 1895 in Hanau, Paul Hindemith engaged with music at a young age. Starting with playing the violin, Hindemith later attended Frankfurt’s Hoch’sche Konservatorium, where he studied violin performance with Adolf Rebner. Further to this, Hindemith Read more…
Carl Nielsen: Symphony No.2 ‘The Four Temperaments’ Context Carl Nielsen was born in 1865 on the island of Funen (the third-largest island that is a part of Denmark). The Nielsen family were incredibly poor, however, his parents were keen musicians, with his father playing cornet and his mother, a singer. Read more…
Roger Quilter: A Children’s Overture Context Roger Quilter was born in Hove, Sussex in 1877. In contrast to his older brothers, Roger was the quiet, shy sibling of the group. In the mid-1880s Quilter was sent to a new prep school in Farnborough, where he was able to nurture his love Read more…
Ralph Vaughan Williams: The Lark Ascending Context Known now as one of the most beloved 20th Century British composers, Ralph Vaughan Williams’ was focused on creating a distinctive ‘English music sound’. This was certainly achieved by the composer, with many of his works being described as ‘quintessentially British’. A distinctive Read more…
Tarik O’Regan: Latent Manifest Context Tarik O’Regan was born in Croydon in 1978, and his mother was Algerian so in his very early life he spent a lot of time abroad. O’Regan claims he was a “late starter” with music, only picking up music when he was 14. However, he Read more…
Julia Gomelskaya: Memento Vitae Context Julia Gomelskaya was born on March 11, 1964 in Ukraine. She studied composition at the Simpheropol Tchaikovsky Musical College in 1983. Also a talented pianist, Gomelskaya studied under Oleksandr Krasotov. After graduating from the college, Gomelskaya went on to study composition at the Ukraine Odessa National A.V. Nezhdanova Music Read more…
Lera Auerbach: Icarus Context Lera Auerbach was born in 1973 in Chelyabinsk – a city that borders Siberia. Her mother was a piano teacher, so she received lessons from her at a young age. The Auerbach family have a history of being musical, so Lera was naturally a fast learner. Read more…
Kaija Saariaho: Laterna Magica Context Kaija Saariaho was born on October 14th, 1952 in Helsinki. Her serious studies within music began with her enrolling into the Sibelius Academy. Her contemporaries include the likes of Paavo Heininen and Magnus Lindberg. She continued studying under Ferneyhough and Huber, whilst also attending summer Read more…