Professor Christopher Wood is a Welsh-born composer of sacred choral music, best known for his setting of the

Requiem A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead ( la, Missa pro defunctis) or Mass of the dead ( la, Missa defunctorum), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, ...

Mass (“The Wood Requiem”), his

Missa Brevis Missa brevis (plural: Missae breves) is . The term usually refers to a mass composition that is short because part of the text of the Mass ordinary that is usually set to music in a full mass is left out, or because its execution time is relati ...

, the Easter Oratorio "Holy Week" and the string orchestra piece "Aberfan", commissioned for the Last Night of the Welsh Proms in 2016. Wood's five-movement Missa Brevis, for choir and organ, was first performed at the sung Eucharist at

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grad ...

, London on 3 August 2014. The Missa Brevis is adapted from the Wood Requiem - a larger work for soloists, choir and orchestra, which was first performed at

St John's Smith Square St John's Smith Square is a redundant church in the centre of Smith Square, Westminster, London. Sold to a charitable trust as a ruin following firebombing in the Second World War, it was restored as a concert hall. This Grade I listed churc ...

, London in December 2012, by L'Inviti Singers conducted by Paul Brough, Principal Guest Conductor of the

BBC Singers The BBC Singers are a British chamber choir, and the professional chamber choir of the BBC. One of the six BBC Performing Groups, the BBC Singers are based at the BBC's Maida Vale Studios in London. The only full-time professional British c ...

. Wood was one of the speakers at the

Royal College of Organists The Royal College of Organists (RCO) is a charity and membership organisation based in the United Kingdom, with members worldwide. Its role is to promote and advance organ playing and choral music, and it offers music education, training and de ...

' recital and reception held at

Mansion House, London Mansion House is the official residence of the Lord Mayor of London. It is a Grade I listed building. Designed by George Dance in the Palladian style, it was built primarily in the 1740s. The Mansion House is used for some of the City of Lon ...

in September 2013 to mark the beginning of the celebration of the RCO's 150th anniversary. In 2014, Wood was appointed Chairman of Trustees of the

. In July 2015, Wood was awarded an Honorary Fellowship from the

University of Wales Trinity Saint David , image = Crest of TSD.png , image_size = 200px , caption = Coat of armsUniversity of Wales Trinity Saint David , established = 2010 (Saint David's College, Lampeter founded 1822 and opened 1827; royal charter 1828) , ...

for services to medicine and music. Wood's follow-up to "Requiem", an Easter Oratorio called "Holy Week", was recorded at

Abbey Road Studios Abbey Road Studios (formerly EMI Recording Studios) is a recording studio at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music c ...

, London in November 2015. On 23 July 2016, Wood's work for string orchestra, "Aberfan", commissioned by the

Welsh Proms The Welsh Proms Cymru is a week long series of classical music performances which take place at the national concert hall of Wales, St David's Hall, Cardiff in July each year. The Proms' Artistic Director is Owain Arwel Hughes Owain Arwel Hughe ...

, was performed by the

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London, that performs and produces primarily classic works. The RPO was established by Thomas Beecham in 1946. In its early days, the orchestra secured profitable ...

, directed by

Owain Arwel Hughes Owain Arwel Hughes Order of the British Empire, CBE (born 21 March 1942) is a Welsh people, Welsh orchestral conductor. Hughes was born in Ton Pentre, Rhondda, the son of the composer Arwel Hughes. He studied at Howardian High School, Cardiff, ...

, at the Last Night of the Welsh Proms. On 22 August 2017, "Aberfan" received its first radio broadcast on Classic FM as part of the Full Works Concert with Jane Jones. In 2018, Aberfan was transcribed for brass. The transcription was premiered at the Welsh Proms, in the national concert hall of Wales, St David's Hall, Cardiff on Wednesday July 25, 2018. The performance featured the massed bands of Lewis Merthyr & RAF St Athan, conducted by Owain Arwel Hughes CBE. The transcription for brass was also recorded on the album "Brass & Voices of Wales" by the Lewis Merthyr Band, conducted by

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wood, Christopher Welsh composers Welsh male composers Living people Year of birth missing (living people)