Richard Allen Harvey (born 25 September 1953) is an English composer and musician. Originally of the mediaevalist progressive rock group Gryphon, he is best known now for his film and television soundtracks. He is also known for his guitar concerto ''Concerto Antico'', which was composed for the guitarist

John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (15 November 2022)Classic Connection review ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who wa ...

and the London Symphony Orchestra. In April 2012, UK radio listeners voted Richard Harvey's Concerto Antico into the Classic FM Hall of Fame for the first time.

Early life and career

Born in Enfield, Middlesex, Harvey became involved in music, learning the

recorder Recorder or The Recorder may refer to: Newspapers * ''Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper * ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US * ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a news ...

when he was four years old, switching first to percussion and later playing

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

in the British Youth Symphony Orchestra. By the time he graduated from London's Royal College of Music in 1972, he was accomplished on the recorder,

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

krumhorn The crumhorn is a double reed instrument of the woodwind family, most commonly used during the Renaissance period. In modern times, particularly since the 1960s, there has been a revival of interest in early music, and crumhorns are being play ...

, and other mediaeval and Renaissance-era instruments, as well as the

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

and various keyboards. He could have joined the

London Philharmonic Orchestra The London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) is one of five permanent symphony orchestras based in London. It was founded by the conductors Sir Thomas Beecham and Malcolm Sargent in 1932 as a rival to the existing London Symphony and BBC Symphony ...

, but instead chose to work with Musica Reservata, an

early music Early music generally comprises Medieval music (500–1400) and Renaissance music (1400–1600), but can also include Baroque music (1600–1750). Originating in Europe, early music is a broad musical era for the beginning of Western classical m ...

ensemble. He subsequently met another RCM graduate, Brian Gulland, and went on to form the progressive rock and folk band Gryphon. During that period, he also worked with other folk rock musicians such as Richard and Linda Thompson and

Ashley Hutchings Ashley Stephen Hutchings, MBE, sometimes known in early years by his nickname, "Tyger" Hutchings (born 26 January 1945) is an English bassist, vocalist, songwriter, arranger, band leader, writer and record producer. He was a founding member of t ...

. When Gryphon wound down in the late 1970s, he became a session musician, playing on Kate Bush's '' Lionheart'', Gerry Rafferty's ''

Night Owl A night owl, evening person or simply owl, is a person who tends to stay up until late at night, or to the very early hours of the morning. Night owls who are involuntarily unable to fall asleep for several hours after a normal time may have d ...

'', Sweet's ''

Level Headed ''Level Headed'' is the sixth studio album by British glam rock band Sweet. Different versions were released by Polydor in Europe and by Capitol in the US, Canada and Japan. The album features " Love Is Like Oxygen", the band's last single to h ...

'' and Gordon Giltrap's ''

Fear of the Dark Fear of the dark is a common fear or phobia among children and, to a varying degree, adults. A fear of the dark does not always concern darkness itself; it can also be a fear of possible or imagined dangers concealed by darkness. Some degree of ...

and The Peacock Party'', among others. He also had a brief spell in New Wave outfit

The Banned ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

Film and television career

After working with film composer Maurice Jarre in the mid 1970s, he became involved in composing for film and television. His first work was to provide music for the television series '' Tales of the Unexpected'' in 1979. He has subsequently supplied scores to over 80 television and film projects. Notable works include 1979's ''

Martian Chronicles ''The Martian Chronicles'' is a science fiction fix-up novel, published in 1950, by American writer Ray Bradbury that chronicles the exploration and settlement of Mars, the home of indigenous Martians, by Americans leaving a troubled Earth that ...

'' ending titles, the horror film '' House of the Long Shadows'' (1983), 1984's wistful '' Shroud for a Nightingale'' theme for the

PD James Phyllis Dorothy James, Baroness James of Holland Park, (3 August 1920 – 27 November 2014), known professionally as P. D. James, was an English novelist and life peer. Her rise to fame came with her series of detective novels featuring th ...

detective series, the action sequel '' The Dirty Dozen: Next Mission'' (1985), British films such as ''

The Assam Garden ''The Assam Garden'' is a 1985 British drama film directed by Mary McMurray and produced by Nigel Stafford-Clark with Peter Jaques as associate producer. Made by Moving Picture Company and distributed by Contemporary Films Ltd., it was written b ...

'' (1985), ''

Steaming Steaming is a method of cooking using steam. This is often done with a food steamer, a kitchen appliance made specifically to cook food with steam, but food can also be steamed in a wok. In the American southwest, steam pits used for cooking ha ...

'' (1985), ''

Defence of the Realm ''Defence of the Realm'' is a 1986 British political thriller film directed by David Drury, starring Gabriel Byrne, Greta Scacchi, and Denholm Elliott, with Robbie Coltrane in a supporting role. The film takes its title from the Defence of the ...

'' (1986) and '' Half Moon Street'' (1986),

Alan Bleasdale Alan George Bleasdale (born 23 March 1946) is an English screenwriter, best known for social realist drama serials based on the lives of ordinary people. A former teacher, he has written for radio, stage and screen, and has also written novels. ...

's '' G.B.H'' in 1991, which he co-wrote with

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in ...

(and which won them, jointly, a British Academy of Film and Television Arts award), '' Luther'' (2003) and, more recently, in 2006, Ron Howard's '' The Da Vinci Code'' and Gabriel Range's '' Death of a President''. In addition he has been a musician on such films as '' The Lion King'', '' Enemy of the State'' and '' Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban''. In 1981, Richard Harvey's "Exchange" and "Water Course" from Harvey's "Nifty Digits" release (KPM Library #1251) were featured in a popular '' Sesame Street'' segment filmed at the Binney and Smith Crayola crayon factory in Easton, Pennsylvania. Harvey also composed the theme song for TBS' World Championship Wrestling, called "Dynamics". Harvey is also a prolific composer of

production music Production music (also known as stock music or library music) is recorded music that can be licensed to customers for use in film, television, radio and other media. Often, the music is produced and owned by production music libraries. Background ...

and founding partner of

West One Music Group West One Music Group is a British global production music company. Founded in Soho, London, in 2003, the group consists of twelve labels, including And Then Some, Asia Record Collective, Electronic Dance Series, Fired Earth Music, Kaptain Music, ...

along with Edwin Cox and Tony Prior. Among his compositions is "Reach for the Stars", which has been used in numerous movie trailers, commercials, and television shows.

Other projects

In 1984, he was a conductor on one of a series of classic rock albums by the London Symphony Orchestra. He has frequently toured and recorded with the guitarist

on projects including the 2002 album ''Magic Box''. He also played on the 2004 album ''

The Opera Band ''The Opera Band'' is the debut album by Amici Forever released in 2004. Making of the album The members of Amici Forever met when rehearsing and performing at opera venues around the world. Tenor Geoff Sewell, originally from New Zealand, came ...

'' by pop/classical crossover act

Amici Forever Amici Forever is a band of four classically trained singers who mix opera with pop music (operatic pop). The band's first album, '' The Opera Band'' ( 2004), reached number one on the Australian classical charts, number two on the United States ( ...

, which reached #74 on the Billboard Top 200 albums and #2 on the Billboard Top Classical crossover chart. He worked with

on his 2006 album ''

My Flame Burns Blue ''My Flame Burns Blue'' is the twenty-second album by Elvis Costello, released on Deutsche Grammophon. It consists of recordings from the North Sea Jazz Festival in July 2004, made with Steve Nieve and The Metropole Orkest conducted by Vince M ...

''. A skilled multi-instrumentalist, he has a collection of over 700 different instruments from around the world. Since 2005, "John Williams & Richard Harvey's World Tour" has appeared in many countries, from Japan and China to Ireland and Luxembourg, with the duo playing a mixture of world and classical music spanning five continents and five centuries, featuring Chinese,

African African or Africans may refer to: * Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa: ** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa *** Ethn ...

and European instruments. Harvey's first recorder concerto (''Concerto Incantato'') enjoyed its world premiere on

Michala Petri Michala Petri (born July 7, 1958) is a Danish recorder player. Her debut as a soloist was in 1969. She is the step-granddaughter of Danish actress Ingeborg Brams. Biography Petri, who began playing the recorder at the age of three, is noted for ...

's CD ''English Recorder Concertos'' in March 2012, alongside works by Malcolm Arnold and Gordon Jacob.

Career highlights

* 1974 Release of Gryphon's ''

Red Queen to Gryphon Three Gryphon are an English progressive and medieval folk rock band formed in London in 1972. They are known for their medieval and Renaissance music, Renaissance style of music. The band briefly flourished in the progressive rock heyday of the e ...

'' * 1977 Composed station theme for Hospital Radio Moorfields (on air 1974–2006) * 1983 Composed music for Gerry Anderson's ''

Terrahawks ''Gerry Anderson & Christopher Burr's Terrahawks'', usually referred to simply as ''Terrahawks'', is a 1980s British science fiction television series produced by Anderson Burr Pictures for London Weekend Television and created by the product ...

'' * 1984 Principal conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra for ''Classic Rock'' * 1985 Composed ''Fantasia'' with

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 ...

(which includes "Reach for the Stars") * 1987 Composed music for the Children's ITV series ''The Gemini Factor'' * 1988 Regular member of

and Friends * 1989 Composed Oratorio ''Plague and the Moonflower'' (to

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

by Ralph Steadman performed in

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

, Salisbury, Canterbury and

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 ...

, and recipient of Best BBC TV Art's Film in 1990) * 1991 British Academy award for the score for '' GBH'' (with

) * 1991 Composed ''A Time of Miracles'' for W11 Opera * 1994 Performed all featured woodwind solos on the score for '' The Lion King'' * 1995 Composed ''Concerto Antico'' for

and the London Symphony Orchestra * 1998 Composed the theme for BBC series " The Ambassador"IMDb biography referenced by Harvey's own website * 1999 Composed the score for the Jim Henson Company's ''

Animal Farm ''Animal Farm'' is a beast fable, in the form of satirical allegorical novella, by George Orwell, first published in England on 17 August 1945. It tells the story of a group of farm animals who rebel against their human farmer, hoping to crea ...

'' * 1999 Composed ''Fantasia 2'' * 2000 Composed score for the acclaimed Hallmark project ''

Arabian Nights ''One Thousand and One Nights'' ( ar, أَلْفُ لَيْلَةٍ وَلَيْلَةٌ, italic=yes, ) is a collection of Middle Eastern folk tales compiled in Arabic during the Islamic Golden Age. It is often known in English as the ''Arabian ...

'' * 2001 Composed score for the

Thai Thai or THAI may refer to: * Of or from Thailand, a country in Southeast Asia ** Thai people, the dominant ethnic group of Thailand ** Thai language, a Tai-Kadai language spoken mainly in and around Thailand *** Thai script *** Thai (Unicode block ...

historical epic '' The Legend of Suriyothai'' * 2002 Composed score for feature film '' Luther'' * 2004 Subhanahongsa Award from the Federation of National Film Associations of Thailand for ''

The Macabre Case of Prom Piram Macabre Case of Prom Pi Ram ( th, คืนบาป พรหมพิราม or ''Keunbab Prompiram'') is a 2003 Thai crime film, murder investigation crime film directed and written by Manop Udomdej. Its storyline is based on Phrom Phiram mur ...

'' * 2005 Composed

Ivor Novello Ivor Novello (born David Ivor Davies; 15 January 1893 – 6 March 1951) was a Welsh actor, dramatist, singer and composer who became one of the most popular British entertainers of the first half of the 20th century. He was born into a musical ...

nominated score for feature-length drama, '' Colditz'' * 2005 Composed score for feature film ''Three'' aka ''

Survival Island ''Survival Island'', also known as ''Three'', is a 2005 erotic thriller survival film written and directed by Stewart Raffill and starring Billy Zane, Kelly Brook, and Juan Pablo Di Pace. Plot Jack and Jennifer are a wealthy couple who are y ...

'' * 2006 Composed score for '' Death of a President'', International Critics' Award winning film at Toronto International Film Festival (September 2006) * 2007 Composed score for ''

King Naresuan King Naresuan the Great (( th, สมเด็จพระนเรศวรมหาราช, , ) or Sanphet II ( th, สรรเพชญ์ที่ ๒), ( my , နရဲစွမ် (သို့) ဗြနရာဇ်); 1555/1556 – ...

'', the follow-up to ''Suriyothai'' * 2009 Composed recorder concerto (Concerto Incantanto) for

and the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong * 2012–14 Conducted the score to Interstellar * 2015 Composed score for the French animated film '' The Little Prince'' (with Hans Zimmer)

Selected discography

*''

'' (CD,

Fanderson Fanderson is the official appreciation society for the works of British film and television producers Gerry and Sylvia Anderson. Based in the United Kingdom, but with an international membership, it is a not-for-profit organisation run by a small ...

. Original incidental music from the series, released in 2002)

References

External links

* * *
Air-Edel Associates
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harvey, Richard 1953 births Living people English film score composers English male film score composers Musicians from London Alumni of the Royal College of Music Annie Award winners English session musicians Gryphon (band) members People from Enfield, London Varèse Sarabande Records artists