Edwin Roxburgh (born 1937) is 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 ...

, conductor and

oboist An oboist (formerly hautboist) is a musician who plays the oboe or any oboe family instrument, including the oboe d'amore, cor anglais or English horn, bass oboe and piccolo oboe or oboe musette. The following is a list of notable past and pres ...

. Roxburgh was born in

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

. After playing oboe in the

National Youth Orchestra A youth orchestra is an orchestra made of young musicians, typically ranging from pre-teens or teenagers to those of conservatory age. Depending on the age range and selectiveness, they may serve different purposes. Orchestras for young studen ...

, he won a double scholarship to study composition with

Herbert Howells Herbert Norman Howells (17 October 1892 – 23 February 1983) was an English composer, organist, and teacher, most famous for his large output of Anglican church music. Life Background and early education Howells was born in Lydney, Gloucest ...

and oboe with

Terence MacDonagh John Alfred Terence MacDonagh (3 February 1908 – 12 September 1986) was an English oboist and cor anglais player, particularly known as one of the four members of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra's so-called "Royal Family" of woodwind players. ...

at the

Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music is a music school, conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the Undergraduate education, undergraduate to the Doctorate, doctoral level in a ...

. He also studied composition with

Nadia Boulanger Juliette Nadia Boulanger (; 16 September 188722 October 1979) was a French music teacher and conductor. She taught many of the leading composers and musicians of the 20th century, and also performed occasionally as a pianist and organist. From a ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

and

Luigi Dallapiccola Luigi Dallapiccola (February 3, 1904 – February 19, 1975) was an Italian composer known for his lyrical twelve-tone compositions. Biography Dallapiccola was born in Pisino d'Istria (at the time part of Austria-Hungary, current Pazin, Croa ...

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

. After his studies he became principal oboist of the

Sadler's Wells Opera English National Opera (ENO) is an opera company based in London, resident at the London Coliseum in St Martin's Lane. It is one of the two principal opera companies in London, along with The Royal Opera. ENO's productions are sung in English. ...

and taught composition and conducting at the Royal College of Music, where he founded the RCM's Twentieth Century Ensemble. Together with

Leon Goossens Leon, Léon (French) or León (Spanish) may refer to: Places Europe * León, Spain, capital city of the Province of León * Province of León, Spain * Kingdom of León, an independent state in the Iberian Peninsula from 910 to 1230 and again f ...

he wrote the Menuhin Music Guide for the oboe in 1977. In 2004, Roxburgh became the acting Head of Composition at the

Birmingham Conservatoire The Royal Birmingham Conservatoire is a music school, drama school and concert venue in Birmingham, England. It provides professional education in music, acting, and related disciplines up to postgraduate level. It is a centre for scholarly res ...

and from 2005 has acted as visiting tutor in composition and conducting, as well as workshop leader. In 2007 his 70th birthday was celebrated in a series of concert performances showcasing a selection of his works. In 2008 he received the

Royal Philharmonic Society The Royal Philharmonic Society (RPS) is a British music society, formed in 1813. Its original purpose was to promote performances of instrumental music in London. Many composers and performers have taken part in its concerts. It is now a memb ...

Elgar Bursary. He is also Associate Composer of the

London Festival Orchestra The London Festival Orchestra (LFO) was established in the 1950s as the 'house orchestra' for Decca Records. In 1980 it was incorporated as an independent performing orchestra under Ross Pople. At least in the world of pop music, the orchestra is b ...

Music

The orchestral piece ''Montage'' was premiered at the BBC Proms in 1977. His Clarinet Concerto (1995), structured as a 30 minute single movement, and the nine movement orchestral work ''Saturn'' from 1982 (a tribute to

Holst Gustav Theodore Holst (born Gustavus Theodore von Holst; 21 September 1874 – 25 May 1934) was an English composer, arranger and teacher. Best known for his orchestral suite ''The Planets'', he composed many other works across a range ...

, depicting each of the planet’s nine satellites) have been recorded. His 2003 opera ''Abelard'' has been published but awaits a full staging. The 2006 Oboe Concerto, ''An Elegy for Ur'', won a British Academy Award. An opera, ''Her War'', for soprano and trumpet with words by

Jonathan Ruffle Jonathan Ruffle is a British writer, director and producer who has made TV and radio programmes for the BBC, ITV and Channel 4. At one time Steve Wright's and Simon Bates’s radio producer on BBC Radio 1, he left to produce the acclaimed BBC ...

, was premiered by soprano April Fredrick and trumpeter Simon Desbruslais in London in September 2020.''Her War'' (Live Performance), The Cockpit
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References

''The Guardian'' review

''Gramophone'' review

Royal Philharmonic Society Elgar Bursary

External links

Birmingham Conservatoire biography
1937 births Living people 20th-century classical composers 21st-century classical composers English classical composers English classical oboists Male oboists Alumni of the Royal College of Music Musicians from Liverpool English male classical composers 20th-century English composers 21st-century English composers 20th-century British male musicians 21st-century British male musicians {{England-musician-stub

Music

Further reading

References

External links