Leon Bosch is a double bassist known for his expressive

bel canto Bel canto (Italian for "beautiful singing" or "beautiful song", )—with several similar constructions (''bellezze del canto'', ''bell'arte del canto'')—is a term with several meanings that relate to Italian singing. The phrase was not associat ...

style.http://www.nac-cna.ca/en/news/viewnews.cfm?ID=749&cat=catNACO. He was principal double bass of the

Academy of St Martin in the Fields The Academy of St Martin in the Fields (ASMF) is an English chamber orchestra, based in London. John Churchill, then Master of Music at the London church of St Martin-in-the-Fields, and Neville Marriner founded the orchestra as "The Academy of ...

,http://www.leonbosch.co.uk/article02.pdf, Double Bassist Magazine #25 Summer 2003 published by Orpheus Publications Newsquest Specialist Media from 1995 until 2014 but is also known as a chamber musician, recitalist, concerto soloist, teacher, conductor and program consultant. He is artistic director of the chamber music ensemble I Musicanti.

Career

Born in Cape Town, though now a British citizen, Bosch graduated from the

University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) ( af, Universiteit van Kaapstad, xh, Yunibesithi ya yaseKapa) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university statu ...

before continuing his studies at the

Royal Northern College of Music The Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) is a conservatoire located in Manchester, England. It is one of four conservatoires associated with the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music. In addition to being a centre of music education ...

in Manchester. Since his 1984 London solo debut with the

Philharmonia Orchestra The Philharmonia Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It was founded in 1945 by Walter Legge, a classical music record producer for EMI. Among the conductors who worked with the orchestra in its early years were Richard Strauss, W ...

, Bosch has appeared as a concerto soloist with many distinguished musicians, including

Pinchas Zukerman Pinchas Zukerman ( he, פנחס צוקרמן, born 16 July 1948) is an Israeli-American violinist, violist and conductor. Life and career Zukerman was born in Tel Aviv, to Jewish parents and Holocaust survivors Yehuda and Miriam Lieberman Zuk ...

, Sir Charles Groves and

Nicholas Kraemer Nicholas Kraemer (born 7 March 1945, in Edinburgh, Scotland) is a British harpsichordist and conductor. Career Kraemer began his career as a harpsichordist. From playing continuo (on a harpsichord) at the back of an orchestra he proceeded to ...

. Highlights of his chamber music partnerships have included engagements with the Lindsay, Belcea and Brodsky String Quartets, the Academy of St Martin in the Fields Chamber Ensemble, I Musicanti, and the Moscow Virtuosi. He has worked with such pianists as

Maria João Pires Maria João Alexandre Barbosa Pires (; born 23 July 1944) is a Portuguese classical pianist, widely regarded as one of the leading interpreters of Mozart, Beethoven and Chopin. Early life and education Pires was born in Lisbon, Portugal, a posthu ...

, Mikhail Rudy, Vladimir Ovchinikov, Peter Donohoe,

Martin Roscoe Martin Roscoe (born 3 August 1952) is an English classical pianist. He performs as a concerto soloist, as a recitalist and as a chamber musician. Early life Martin Roscoe was born in Halton, Runcorn, Cheshire. He first became serious about mus ...

and, most recently on CD, the Vienna-based Korean pianist Sung-Suk Kang. Bosch has played a significant part in, and received acclaim for, the exploration of challenging and little-known music for double bass both in live performance and on disc.http://www.leonbosch.co.uk/article03.pdf Double Bassist magazine #29 Summer 2004 published by Orpheus Publications Newsquest Specialist Media He has been responsible for a number of important first performances including "Pueblo", a commission from

John McCabe John McCabe may refer to: *John McCabe (composer) (1939–2015), British composer and classical pianist *John McCabe (writer) (1920–2005), Shakespearean scholar and biographer *Christopher John McCabe Christopher John McCabe (born 20 Oc ...

, several works by Allan Stephenson, and music by the South African composers

Hendrik Hofmeyr Hendrik Pienaar Hofmeyr (born 20 November 1957) is a South African composer. Born in Cape Town, he furthered his studies in Italy during 10 years of self-imposed exile as a conscientious objector. While there, he won the South African Opera C ...

and Paul Hanmer. As a teacher, Leon Bosch holds a professorship at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London and is on the teaching staff at The Purcell School for young musicians Bosch's experiences under South Africa's

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

regime have ensured he has a keen interest in social and political issues; he holds a master's degree in Intelligence and International Relations from the

University of Salford , caption = Coat of ArmsUniversity of Salford , mottoeng = "Let us seek higher things" , established = 1850 - Pendleton Mechanics Institute 1896 – Royal Technical Institute, Salford 1967 – gained ...

Discography

With Sung-Suk Kang (piano) The Music of Rankl, Sprongl and Hindemith Josep Cervera-Bret: The Catalan Virtuoso Pedro Valls: Music for Double Bass and Piano The Hungarian Double Bass Virtuoso Double Bass, vols 1 & 2 The Russian Double Bass The British Double Bass With the

Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf: Complete Works for Solo Double Bass

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bosch, Leon Double-bassists Male double-bassists 1961 births Living people 21st-century double-bassists 21st-century male musicians 20th-century South African musicians 21st-century South African musicians University of Cape Town alumni 20th-century male musicians