Roger Best, HonRCM (28 September 1936 – 8 October 2013) was a British violist. He was principal violist of the Northern Sinfonia Orchestra and a member of the Alberni String Quartet. In 1952 he won an open scholarship to the Royal Manchester College of Music to study the viola with

Paul Cropper Paul Cropper, MBE, (1913-2006) was a British violist and principal viola of the BBC Northern Symphony Orchestra (later named the BBC Philharmonic) from 1947 to 1982. Biography Paul Cropper was born in Wallasey, Cheshire, England, on 12 March 19 ...

. Whilst there he won the Hiles Gold Medal (1958). In 1960 Best was awarded a Barber Trust Scholarship from the University of Birmingham. In 1959 he was invited to join the Halle Orchestra by Sir John Barbirolli. In 1961 he took up the principal viola position with the Northern Sinfonia Orchestra. The Northern Sinfonia commissioned two concertos for him – from Sir Malcolm Arnold (Viola Concerto 0p.108, 1971) and Sir Richard Rodney Bennett, (Viola Concerto, 1973). He recorded the Arnold concerto in 1971, with the composer conducting. His fellow Liverpudlian and fellow student at the RMCM,

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 ...

wrote his Concerto Funèbre for Viola and Chamber Orchestra (1962) for Best, but Best never performed the work.The first performance was given by James Durrant. He became viola professor at the Royal College of Music in 1973 and taught there for over twenty-five years. He also held professorships at the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke of ...

and the

Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland ( gd, Conservatoire Rìoghail na h-Alba), formerly the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama ( gd, Acadamaidh Rìoghail Ciùil is Dràma na h-Alba) is a conservatoire of dance, drama, music, production, and ...

. In 1977 he joined the Alberni String Quartet and played with them for twenty years before retiring in 1997. He made numerous recordings with the Alberni Quartet and as a soloist, recording Benjamin Britten’s Lachrymae for Viola and String Orchestra and

Ralph Vaughan Williams Ralph Vaughan Williams, (; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over ...

’s Flos Campi with the

English String Orchestra The English Symphony Orchestra and the English String Orchestra (collectively abbreviated as ESO) are two iterations of a British professional orchestra based in the city of Worcester, Worcestershire, in the West Midlands of England. History Fou ...

. He played on a Maggini viola (c.1600) once owned by the legendary violist, Lionel Tertis. He died aged 77 in 2013 after a long illness.

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References

* * * * 1936 births British classical violists English classical violists Academics of the Royal Academy of Music Academics of the Royal College of Music 2013 deaths {{UK-classical-musician-stub