Martyn Charles Brabbins (born 13 August 1959) is a British conductor. The fourth of five children in his family, he learned to play the

euphonium The euphonium is a medium-sized, 3 or 4-valve, often compensating, conical-bore, tenor-voiced brass instrument that derives its name from the Ancient Greek word ''euphōnos'', meaning "well-sounding" or "sweet-voiced" ( ''eu'' means "well" ...

, and then the

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the Standing wave, air column ...

during his youth at Towcester Studio Brass Band. He later studied composition at

Goldsmiths, University of London Goldsmiths, University of London, officially the Goldsmiths' College, is a constituent research university of the University of London in England. It was originally founded in 1891 as The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute by the Wor ...

. He subsequently studied conducting with Ilya Musin at the

Leningrad Conservatory The N. A. Rimsky-Korsakov Saint Petersburg State Conservatory (russian: Санкт-Петербургская государственная консерватория имени Н. А. Римского-Корсакова) (formerly known as th ...

. Brabbins first came to international attention when he was awarded first prize at the

Leeds Conductors Competition The Leeds Conductors Competition, is a music competition for young British conductors in the city of Leeds. History The competition was founded by Michael Johnson of the Leeds City Council and David Lloyd-Jones, Founder Director of Opera North wi ...

in 1988. Between 1994 and 2005, Brabbins was Associate Principal Conductor of the

BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra The BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra (BBC SSO) is a Scottish broadcasting symphony orchestra based in Glasgow. One of five full-time orchestras maintained by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), it is the oldest full-time professional rad ...

. He became principal conductor of

Sinfonia 21 Sinfonia (; plural ''sinfonie'') is the Italian word for symphony, from the Latin ''symphonia'', in turn derived from Ancient Greek συμφωνία ''symphōnia'' (agreement or concord of sound), from the prefix σύν (together) and ϕωνή (so ...

in 1994. He was

artistic director An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre or dance company, who handles the organization's artistic direction. They are generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since the ...

of the

Cheltenham Music Festival The Cheltenham Music Festival is a British music festival, held annually in Cheltenham in the summer months (June, July) since 1945. The festival is renowned for premieres of contemporary music, hosting over 250 music premieres as of July 200 ...

from 2005 to 2007. During his Cheltenham tenure, he established a new ensemble, the Festival Players. In

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

, he created a new chamber music series called "Music in Transition". On 17 July 2011, Brabbins conducted the 6th live performance of

Havergal Brian Havergal Brian (born William Brian; 29 January 187628 November 1972) was an English composer. He is best known for having composed 32 symphonies (an unusually high total for a 20th-century composer), most of them late in his life. His best-know ...

's Symphony No. 1 "The Gothic", at

The Proms The BBC Proms or Proms, formally named the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts Presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hal ...

, which was later released on a Hyperion commercial recording. Brabbins was subsequently named president of the Havergal Brian Society. Brabbins is also conductor laureate of the Huddersfield Choral Society. In 2002, Brabbins founded a training course for aspiring conductors at the St Magnus International Festival in

Orkney Orkney (; sco, Orkney; on, Orkneyjar; nrn, Orknøjar), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated off the north coast of the island of Great Britain. Orkney is 10 miles (16 km) north ...

, which he continues to co-direct. Outside of the UK, Brabbins became principal guest conductor of

deFilharmonie The Antwerp Symphony Orchestra is the symphony orchestra of Flanders (Belgium), based in the Queen Elisabeth Hall in Antwerp. The orchestra is led by chief conductor Elim Chan and honorary conductor Philippe Herreweghe. The organisation, which is ...

(Royal Flemish Philharmonic) in 2009. He held the position of chief conductor of the

Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra The is a symphony orchestra based in Nagoya, Japan, founded in 1966. The orchestra gives concerts primarily at the Aichi Prefectural Arts Theater Concert Hall and the Chukyo University Center for Culture & Arts Aurora Hall. The orchestra gave ...

from 2012 to 2016. Brabbins first guest-conducted at

English National 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 ...

(ENO) in 2012, in a production of Vaughan Williams' ''

The Pilgrim's Progress ''The Pilgrim's Progress from This World, to That Which Is to Come'' is a 1678 Christian allegory written by John Bunyan. It is regarded as one of the most significant works of theological fiction in English literature and a progenitor of ...

''. On 21 October 2016, ENO named Brabbins its next music director, with immediate effect. His initial ENO contract is until October 2020. Brabbins has conducted commercial recordings of music for such labels as Warner, Chandos, Hyperion, NMC, Nimbus, and Deutsche Grammophon. Brabbins and his wife Karen (née Evans) met at Goldsmiths. The couple married in 1985, and have three children. In January 2013, the

University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...

awarded Brabbins an honorary degree, of Doctor of Music ''honoris causa''.

Selected recordings

Saint-Saëns: piano concertos n°2 & n°5,

Louis Schwizgebel-Wang Louis Schwizgebel (born 19 November 1987) is a Swiss pianist. He studied piano with Franz Josefovski and Brigitte Meyer at the Lausanne Conservatory, Pascal Devoyon at Universität der Künste Berlin, Emanuel Ax and Robert McDonald at the Juilliar ...

, piano, BBC Symphony Orchestra, cond. Martyn Brabbins &

Fabien Gabel Fabien Gabel (born 10 September 1975) is a French conductor. Biography As a youth, Gabel began trumpet studies at age 6. He continued his music education at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris, where he won a first prize ...

; label Aparté 2015

References

External links

Intermusica agency biography of Martyn Brabbins

Answers.com page on Martyn Brabbins

Dutch-language page of the Royal Flemish Philharmonic on Martyn Brabbins

"Martyn Brabbins moves to NPO". International Arts Manager, 15 December 2011
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brabbins, Martyn English conductors (music) British male conductors (music) Artistic directors (music) Prize-winners of the Leeds Conductors Competition Alumni of Goldsmiths, University of London Saint Petersburg Conservatory alumni 1961 births Living people 21st-century British conductors (music) 21st-century British male musicians