Will Todd (b 14 January 1970) is an English musician and composer. He is a pianist, who performs regularly with others in his own works.

Biography and work

Todd was born in

County Durham County Durham ( ), officially simply Durham,UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. is a ceremonial county in North East England.North East Assembly �About North East E ...

, attended

Durham School Durham School is an independent boarding and day school in the English public school tradition located in Durham, North East England and was an all-boys institution until 1985, when girls were admitted to the sixth form. The school takes pupils a ...

and joined the choir of

St Oswald's Church, Durham St Oswald's Church is a Church of England parish church in Durham, County Durham. The church is a grade II* listed building and it dates from the 12th century. History The present church dates from the late 12th century. It is likely built on the ...

under its choirmaster David Higgins. He went on to study music at 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 ...

. He is a pianist and regularly performs with his trio, and this played a large role in one of his best-known works, his ''Mass in Blue''. ''Mass in Blue'' (originally entitled Jazz Mass) was commissioned b
Hertfordshire Chorus
and first performed at the Cambridge Corn Exchange in July 2003 with Will Todd at the piano. Todd's wife, Bethany Halliday, performed the soprano solo alongside the Blue Planet Orchestra and Hertfordshire Chorus, conducted by

David Temple David Anthony Temple is a British conductor and musical director of Crouch End Festival Chorus and Hertfordshire Chorus. He has conducted at the Barbican Centre, Royal Festival Hall and Symphony Hall, Birmingham, Royal Albert Hall, Sage Ga ...

. His work ''The Blackened Man'' won second prize in the ''International Verdi Opera Competition'' in 2002 and was later staged at the 2004 Buxton Festival. ''The Screams of Kitty Genovese'', a piece of music theatre, has been produced at the Boston Conservatory and New York Musical Theatre Festival. His

oratorio An oratorio () is a large musical composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists. Like most operas, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an instrumental ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias. However, opera is mus ...

''Saint Cuthbert'', with a libretto by Ben Dunwell based on the life of the

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...

, has been performed and recorded by the Hallé Orchestra and Choir under

Christopher Austin Christopher Austin (born 14 November 1968) is a British conductor, and an arranger and orchestrator of film and television scores. Austin originally intended to become a composer. He studied at the University of Bristol with Adrian Beaumont ...

. ''Among Angels'' was commissioned by the Genesis Foundation and was first performed by The Sixteen in Salzburg. Written for WNO Max, ''Sweetness and Badness'' was performed on a tour during autumn 2006. ''Whirlwind'', commissioned by Streetwise Opera, was first performed at The Sage Gateshead.

List of compositions

Opera

* ''The Blackened Man'' – Opera with 7 roles, chorus and full orchestra or chamber ensemble (2001) * ''Whirlwind'' – Opera with 4 actor singers, mixed chorus, small ensemble and live sound score (2006) * ''Sweetness and Badness'' – Opera with 5 actor singers and small ensemble (2006) * ''Migrations'' (2022), premiered by the

Welsh National Opera Welsh National Opera (WNO) ( cy, Opera Cenedlaethol Cymru) is an opera company based in Cardiff, Wales; it gave its first performances in 1946. It began as a mainly amateur body and transformed into an all-professional ensemble by 1973. In its ...

at the

Wales Millennium Center Wales Millennium Centre ( cy, Canolfan Mileniwm Cymru) is an arts centre located in the Cardiff Bay area of Cardiff, Wales. The site covers a total area of . Phase 1 of the building was opened during the weekend of the 26–28 November 2004 an ...

in Cardiff, Wales.

Cantata and Oratorio

* ''Midwinter'' –

Cantata A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir. The meaning of ...

for

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

and

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

, chorus and orchestra (1992) * ''Saint Cuthbert'' – Oratorio for soprano,

tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...

and baritone, chorus,

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

and orchestra (1995) * ''The Burning Road'' – Cantata for soprano and baritone, chorus and orchestra (1996) * ''A Song of Creation'' – Cantata for choir, chamber choir, children's choir, soprano, tenor and bass soloists, organ and orchestra (2000)

Other

*''Winter Dances'' –

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

(1989) *''The Screams of Kitty Genovese'' – 12 actor-singers and pit ensemble (1999) *''Mass in Blue'' – soprano, chorus and jazz ensemble or trio (2003) *''Gala and Gloria'' – soprano, mezzo and baritone soloists, chorus, orchestra and brass band (2004) *''Among Angels'' – 16 part SATB with 2 harps (2006) *''Before Action'' – SATB, full orchestra. Commissioned by the BBC Singers. A setting of "Before Action" by

W. N. Hodgson William Noel Hodgson MC (3 January 1893 – 1 July 1916) was an English poet. During the First World War, he published stories and poems under the pen name Edward Melbourne. Early life and education Hodgson was the fourth and youngest child o ...

(2006) *''Let us be True'' – SATB, solo violin, piano, organ, percussion & strings. A setting of "

Dover Beach "Dover Beach" is a lyric poem by the English poet Matthew Arnold. It was first published in 1867 in the collection ''New Poems''; however, surviving notes indicate its composition may have begun as early as 1849. The most likely date is 1851.Al ...

" by Matthew Arnold (2006) *''You have seen the House Built'' – SATB choir and organ, commissioned by Chichester Cathedral for their 900th anniversary (2008) *''Requiem'' – soprano, electric guitar and chorus, commissioned by the

Fairhaven Singers The Fairhaven Singers is a chamber choir based in Cambridge, UK, directed by Ralph Woodward. The choir is a mixed ensemble of about 48 amateur singers singing choral repertoire from the 15th century to the present. Among the major works it has perf ...

(2009) *''Te Deum'' – solo soprano, young people's choir (up to 3 parts), SATB chorus and instrumental ensemble. Latin text with additional words by Ben Dunwell (2009) *''Clarinet Concerto'' – Jazz clarinet and orchestra, premiered by Emma Johnson (2009) *
The Call of Wisdom
' – SATB choir and organ, commissioned as part of the

Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II The year 2012 marked the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II being the 60th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II on 6 February 1952. The only diamond jubilee celebration for any of Elizabeth's predecessors was in 1897, for the 60th an ...

to be sung by th
Diamond Choir
(2012) *
Songs of Love
' – SATB choir and Jazz trio, commissioned by Symphony Silicon Valley Chorale for their Silver Anniversary concert (2012) *
Choral Symphony No.5 ("Rage Against The Dying Of The Light")
' - SATB choir and symphony orchestra, based on the poem "

Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night "Do not go gentle into that good night" is a poem in the form of a villanelle by Welsh poet Dylan Thomas (1914–1953), and is one of his best-known works. Though first published in the journal ''Botteghe Oscure'' in 1951, the poem was written in ...

" by

Dylan Thomas Dylan Marlais Thomas (27 October 1914 – 9 November 1953) was a Welsh poet and writer whose works include the poems "Do not go gentle into that good night" and "And death shall have no dominion", as well as the "play for voices" ''Under ...

; commissioned by the

Crouch End Festival Chorus Crouch End Festival Chorus (CEFC) is a symphonic choir based in north London which performs in a range of musical styles, including traditional choral repertoire, contemporary classical, rock, pop and film music. Led by musical director David ...

, and premiered at Barbican Hall, London in 2014.

References

External links

*Press release
Oxford University Press: Diamond Jubilee anthem by Will Todd published
with links to purchase the score of ''The Call of Wisdom'' piece. {{DEFAULTSORT:Todd, Will 1970 births Living people Musicians from County Durham 20th-century classical composers 21st-century classical composers English classical composers Alumni of the University of Bristol English male classical composers 20th-century English composers 21st-century English composers 20th-century British male musicians 21st-century British male musicians