Andrew Lowe Watson (17 January 1958 - 25 April 2021) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

for

musical theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...

and concert music. Along with author

Catherine Storr Catherine Storr, Baroness Balogh (born Catherine Cole; 21 July 1913 – 8 January 2001,Eccleshare (2005) gives the date of her death as 8 January; Eccleshare (2001) and Thwaite (2001) give it as 6 January.) was an English children's writer, best ...

, he wrote the

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

Marianne Dreams ''Marianne Dreams'' is a children's fantasy novel by Catherine Storr. It was illustrated with drawings by Marjorie-Ann Watts and published by Faber and Faber in 1958. The first paperback edition, from Puffin Books in 1964, is catalogued by the L ...

'' (2002), based on the children's

fantasy novel Fantasy literature is literature set in an imaginary universe, often but not always without any locations, events, or people from the real world. Magic, the supernatural and magical creatures are common in many of these imaginary worlds. Fa ...

. It premiered in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in June 2004. He was a student of

Norma Fisher Norma Fisher (born 1940) is an English concert pianist and professor of piano living in London. Illness shortened her performing career in the 1990s and she turned instead to teaching. Biography Norma Fisher was born in London of Russian-Polish ...

. His eight musicals, commissioned by the Brüder-Grimm-Märchenfestspiele in

Hanau Hanau () is a town in the Main-Kinzig-Kreis, in Hesse, Germany. It is located 25 km east of Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main and is part of the Frankfurt Rhine-Main, Frankfurt Rhine-Main Metropolitan Region. Its Hanau Hauptbahnhof, station is a ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, and based on the Tales of the

Brothers Grimm The Brothers Grimm ( or ), Jacob (1785–1863) and Wilhelm (1786–1859), were a brother duo of German academics, philologists, cultural researchers, lexicographers, and authors who together collected and published folklore. They are among the ...

, have been performed in Germany and

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

External links

Article in "The Independent"

Composer's Website
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Brüder Grimm Märchenfestspiele, Hanau
Living people 1958 births English male composers 20th-century English composers 21st-century English composers 20th-century British male musicians 21st-century British male musicians {{UK-composer-stub