David Willcocks
Sir David Willcocks CBE MC | |
---|---|
Born | David Valentine Willcocks 30 December 1919 |
Died | 17 September 2015 , England | (aged 95)
Occupations |
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Organisations |
Sir David Valentine Willcocks,
During the Second World War (1939–1945) he served as an officer in the British Army, and was decorated with the Military Cross for his actions on Hill 112 during the Battle of Normandy in July 1944. His elder son, Jonathan Willcocks, is also a composer.
Biography
Born in
Military service
With the outbreak of the
Musical career
Willcocks returned to Cambridge in 1945 to complete his studies, and in 1947 was elected a Fellow of King's College and appointed Conductor of the
From 1957 to 1974 he held the post for which he is probably best known, Director of Music at King's College, Cambridge.[8] He made numerous recordings with the college choir. (Among the most notable recordings was one of Thomas Tallis's Spem in alium, made in 1965.) The choir toured extensively, giving concerts worldwide, as well as garnering further acclaim internationally through television and radio appearances. Under the baton of Willcocks, Cambridge University Musical Society performed Benjamin Britten's War Requiem in 1963 in (Perugia) Milan, La Scala, and in Venice. The choir subsequently performed the work in Japan, Hong Kong, Portugal, and the Netherlands. In 1960, he also became the musical director of the Bach Choir in London.[2]
He held these positions at Cambridge until the 1970s when he accepted the post of Director of the
After stepping down from the Royal College, Willcocks resumed conducting and editing scores as his primary activities. A 1990 profile in
On 15 May 2010, a celebration of his contribution to music took place at the Royal Albert Hall in London, where pieces selected by Willcocks were performed by singers who are part of the Really Big Chorus. Special guests included choristers from King's College Choir, Cambridge, who performed three pieces.[15]
He died at home in Cambridge on the morning of 17 September 2015.[16]
Recordings and broadcasts
Willcocks made recordings with
He is particularly known for his widely used choral arrangements of Christmas carols, many of which were originally written or arranged for the Service of Nine Lessons and Carols at King's and/or the Bach Choir's Christmas concerts. They are published in the five Carols for Choirs anthologies (1961–1987), edited by Willcocks with Reginald Jacques (first volume) or John Rutter.[8][22] The descant arrangements in particular are among the most famous and well-loved musical components.[23] He was Music Director Emeritus of King's College Choir, and an Honorary Fellow of King's College, Cambridge.[24]
Outside the world of classical music, Willcocks conducted his London Bach Choir for the studio recording of "
A notable broadcast took place on
Selected Compositions
- Five Folksongs (1972)[26]
- Introduction (Fanfare), Variations and Fughetto on the Hymn Tune Jena (Breslau) (1986). Commissioned by the Detroit chapter of the American Guild of Organists, premiered by Marilyn Mason at the 1986 AGO national convention.[27]
- A Ceremony of Psalms (1989)[26]
- Tomorrow shall be my dancing day[26]
Honours
Commonwealth honours
- Commonwealth honours
Country | Date of award | Appointment | Post-nominal letters |
---|---|---|---|
United Kingdom | 1971 | Commander of the Order of the British Empire | CBE |
United Kingdom | 1977 | Knight Bachelor | Kt |
- Military decorations
Country | Date of award | Decoration | Post-nominal letters |
---|---|---|---|
United Kingdom | 21 December 1944 | Military Cross | MC |
United Kingdom | 1939-45 Star |
||
United Kingdom | France and Germany Star | ||
United Kingdom | Defence Medal | ||
United Kingdom | War Medal |
Scholastic
- Fellowships
Location | Date of award | School | Position |
---|---|---|---|
England | 1938 | Royal College of Organists | Fellow (FRCO)[24] |
England | 1947 | King's College, Cambridge | Fellow[24] |
England | 1965 | Royal Academy of Music | Honorary Fellow (FRAM)[24] |
England | 1965 | Royal School of Church Music | Fellow (FRSCM)[24] |
Canada | 1967 | Royal Canadian College of Organists | Fellow (FRCCO)[24] |
England | 1971 | Royal College of Music | Fellow (FRCM) [28] |
England | 1976 | Trinity College London | Honorary Fellow (HonFTCL)[24] |
England | 1977 | Royal Northern College of Music | Fellow (FRNCM)[24] |
England | 1979 | King's College Cambridge |
Honorary Fellow [24] |
England | 1980 | Guildhall School of Music |
Honorary Fellow (FGSM)[24] |
England | 1982 | Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama |
Fellow (FRSAMD)[24] |
England | 2012 | Falmouth University | Honorary Fellow [29] |
- Honorary degrees
Location | Date of award | School | Degree | Gave Commencement Address |
---|---|---|---|---|
England | 1976 | University of Exeter | Doctor of Music (D.Mus.) [30] | |
England | 1977 | University of Leicester | Doctor of Music (D.Mus.) [31] | |
USA | 1980 | Westminster Choir College, Princeton | Doctor of Music (D.Mus.)[24] | |
England | 1981 | University of Bristol | Doctor of Music (D.Mus.)[24] | |
England | 1982 | University of Sussex | Doctor of Letters (D.Litt.) [32] | |
Canada | 1985 | Trinity College, Toronto | Doctor of Sacred Letters[24] |
References
- ^ a b Robinson, Ray (October 1985). "Sir David Willcocks: A Personal View". The Choral Journal. Published by: American Choral Directors Association. 26 (3): 15.
- ^ a b c d Shenton, Kenneth (18 September 2015). "Sir David Willcocks: Charismatic conductor and organist who raised choral standards round the world to new levels of excellence". The Independent. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
- ^ Shenton, Kenneth (29 May 2020). "Obituary:David Briggs". The Church Times.
- ^ "No. 35089". The London Gazette (Supplement). 25 February 1941. pp. 1201–1203.
- ^ "Recommendations for Honours and Awards (Army)—Image details—Willcocks, David Valentine" (Fee may be required to view pdf of full original recommendation). Documents Online. The National Archives. Retrieved 15 October 2008.
- ^ "No. 36850". The London Gazette (Supplement). 19 December 1944. pp. 5854–5856.
- ^ a b Cantrell, Scott (29 April 1990). "The Man Who Helped Define Choral Music". The New York Times. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
- ^ a b c Hewett, Ivan (17 September 2015). "Sir David Willcocks: his musicality was impregnable". The Telegraph. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
- ^ "No. 45384". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 June 1971. p. 5965.
- ^ "No. 47234". The London Gazette (Supplement). 10 June 1977. pp. 7080–7081.
- ^ "No. 47415". The London Gazette. 23 December 1977. p. 16073.
- ^ "Charles and Diana marry". BBC News. 29 July 1981. Retrieved 13 October 2008.
- ^ "International Special Report: Princess Diana, 1961-1997". The Washington Post. 30 January 1999. Retrieved 13 October 2008.
- ^ Kozinn, Allan (2 August 1988). "Willcocks Leads Mozart Requiem". The New York Times. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
- ^ "The Scratch® Celebration for Sir David Willcocks". BBC. 15 May 2010. Retrieved 8 December 2015.
- ^ Fox, Margalit (22 September 2015). "Sir David Willcocks, Conductor Who Influenced British Choral Music, Dies at 95". The New York Times. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
- ^ a b "Sir David Willcocks, choirmaster: obituary". Daily Telegraph. 17 September 2015. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
- ^ Thompson, Damian. "Middle England meets its Saviour: The Bach Choir's magnificent St Matthew Passion". Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 9 April 2012. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
- ^ "David Willcocks & King's College Choir Cambridge / Bach Cantatas & Other Vocal Works". Bach-Cantatas. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
- ^ Gramophone Classical Good CD Guide
- ^ BBC Radio 3's Breakfast programme (17 October 2011)
- ^ Hough, Stephen. "Happy 90th Birthday, Sir David Willcocks!". Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 5 January 2010. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
- ^ Ross, Daniel (19 December 2014). "These are factually the greatest Christmas carol descants of all time". ClassicFM. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
- ^ ISBN 0900332964.
- ^ Soul Music (Series 10), "Faure Requiem", BBC Radio 4, 21 September 2010. Retrieved on 22 September 2010.
- ^ a b c "Choral music of David Willcocks Priory PRCD 1053 [JQ] : Classical Music Reviews - August 2011 MusicWeb-International". www.musicweb-international.com. Retrieved 22 January 2023.
- ^ Dance, University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & (1880). School of Music, Theatre & Dance (University of Michigan) Publications. School of Music, University of Michigan.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Fellows list 2019rcm.ac.uk Archived 28 November 2020 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Fellows & Honorary Fellows | Falmouth University". 7 October 2023.
- ^ "Previous honorary graduates | Honorary graduates | University of Exeter".
- ^ "Honorary Graduates | Graduation | University of Leicester".
- ^ List of honorary graduatessussex.ac.uk Archived 19 January 2016 at the Wayback Machine
External links
- David Willcocks at IMDb
- Interview with Sir David Willcocks, 22 January 1989
- Martin Cullingford: Conductor and organist Sir David Willcocks has died Gramophone 17 September 2015
- first part of an interview by Alan Macfarlane 11 December 2008 (video)
- second part of an interview by Alan Macfarlane 15 December 2008 (video)
- A Life in Music. Conversations with Sir David Willcocks and Friends. William Owen, ed. Oxford University Press, New York,m 2008.