William Mathias CBE

Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...

(1 November 1934 — 29 July 1992) was a Welsh

Wales

Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...

 composer

Composer

A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...

.

Brief biography

Mathias was born in Whitland

Whitland

Whitland is a small town in Carmarthenshire, south-west Wales, lying on the River Tâf. Whitland is home to the elusive "Whitland Trout" noted for its eggs and oily scales.- History :...

, Carmarthenshire

Carmarthenshire

Carmarthenshire is a unitary authority in the south west of Wales and one of thirteen historic counties. It is the 3rd largest in Wales. Its three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford...

. A child prodigy, he started playing the piano at the age of three and composing at the age of five. He studied at the Royal Academy of Music

Royal Academy of Music

The Royal Academy of Music in London, England, is a conservatoire, Britain's oldest degree-granting music school and a constituent college of the University of London since 1999. The Academy was founded by Lord Burghersh in 1822 with the help and ideas of the French harpist and composer Nicolas...

 under Lennox Berkeley

Lennox Berkeley

Sir Lennox Randal Francis Berkeley was an English composer.- Biography :He was born in Oxford, England, and educated at the Dragon School, Gresham's School and Merton College, Oxford...

, where he was elected a fellow in 1965. In 1968, he received the Bax Society Prize of the Harriet Cohen International Music Award

Harriet Cohen International Music Award

The Harriet Cohen International Music Award was founded in 1951 by Sir Arnold Bax and others in 1951, in honour of the British pianist Harriet Cohen.- 1950s :1951*Philippe Entremont – Piano Medal1954*Ingrid Haebler – Beethoven Medal1955...

. He was professor of music and head of department at the University of Wales, Bangor, from 1970 until 1988.

His compositions include large scale works, including an opera, The Servants (1980), three symphonies

Symphony

A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, scored almost always for orchestra. A symphony usually contains at least one movement or episode composed according to the sonata principle...

 and three piano concerto

Piano concerto

A piano concerto is a concerto written for piano and orchestra.See also harpsichord concerto; some of these works are occasionally played on piano...

s. Much of his music was written for the Anglican choral tradition

Anglican church music

Anglican church music is music that is written for liturgical performance in Anglican church services.Almost all of it is written for choir with or without organ accompaniment...

, most famously the anthem

Anthem

The term anthem means either a specific form of Anglican church music , or more generally, a song of celebration, usually acting as a symbol for a distinct group of people, as in the term "national anthem" or "sports anthem".-Etymology:The word is derived from the Greek via Old English , a word...

 Let the people praise Thee, O God written for the July 1981 royal wedding of the Prince

Charles, Prince of Wales

Prince Charles, Prince of Wales is the heir apparent and eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. Since 1958 his major title has been His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. In Scotland he is additionally known as The Duke of Rothesay...

 and Princess of Wales

Diana, Princess of Wales

Diana, Princess of Wales was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, whom she married on 29 July 1981, and an international charity and fundraising figure, as well as a preeminent celebrity of the late 20th century...

, which had a television audience of an estimated 1 billion people worldwide.

Mathias wrote his Sinfonietta – initially called Dance Suite – for the Leicestershire Schools Symphony Orchestra

Leicestershire Schools Symphony Orchestra

The Leicestershire Schools Symphony Orchestra is a youth orchestra based in Leicester, England. The players, aged between 15 and 18, are all drawn from secondary schools in the county of Leicestershire and the City of Leicester.-History:...

 in late 1966, and it received its first performance at Leicester

Leicester

Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...

 De Montfort Hall

De Montfort Hall

De Montfort Hall is a music and performance venue in Leicester, England. It is situated adjacent to Victoria Park and is named after Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester.-History:...

 during the 1967 Schools Festival. It was also included in the orchestra's tour programme for Denmark

Denmark

Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...

 and Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 later in the year. The LSSO made the first commercial recording of Sinfonietta for the Pye Golden Guinea

Pye Golden Guinea Records

Pye Records formed Pye Golden Guinea Records in 1957 as a budget-price album label, originally costing one guinea . It was closed in the seventies and eventually replaced by Marble Arch Records....

 label in July 1967 under the direction of the composer (see external links below).

He founded the North Wales International Music Festival

North Wales International Music Festival

The North Wales International Music Festival is a classical music festival founded by William Mathias in 1972 and held annually in the town of St Asaph, Wales.-External links:*...

 in St Asaph

St Asaph

St Asaph is a town and community on the River Elwy in Denbighshire, Wales. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 3,491.The town of St Asaph is surrounded by countryside and views of the Vale of Clwyd. It is situated close to a number of busy coastal towns such as Rhyl, Prestatyn, Abergele,...

 in 1972 and directed it until his death in 1992.

He is buried outside St Asaph Cathedral

St Asaph Cathedral

St Asaph Cathedral is the Anglican cathedral in St Asaph, Denbighshire, north Wales. It is sometimes claimed to be the smallest Anglican cathedral in Britain.- History :...

.

Choral Works

• All Thy Wisdom Shall Praise Thee for choir and organ Op.17b
• Make a joyful noise Op.26 no.2
• Festival Te Deum for choir and organ Op.28
• O Sing Unto the Lord for choir and organ Op.29
• Three Medieval Lyrics for choir and instrumental ensemble Op.33
• An Admonition to Rulers' Op.43
• Psalm 150 for choir and orchestra Op.44
• Lift Up Your Heads, O Ye Gates Op.44 no.2
• Ave Rex Op. 45
• Sir Christemas (Part of Ave Rex Op.45)
• O Salutaris Hostia for male voices Op.48
• Bless the Lord for choir and organ Op.51
• Gloria for male voices and organ Op.52
• Jesus College Service, Op. 53

• Alleluya Psallat for choir and organ Op.58
• Elegy for a Prince for voice and orchestra Op.59
• A Vision of Time and Eternity for contralto and piano Op.61
• Ceremony After a Fire Raid for choir, piano and percussion Op.63
• Missa Brevis for choir and organ Op.64
• This Worlde's Joie Op.67
• Missa Brevis (1973)
• Ceremony after a Fire Raid
• A May Magnificat Op.79 no.2
• Jonah
• The Fields of Praise for tenor and piano Op.74
• A Royal Garland for choir Op.77
• Nativity Carol Op.77 no.3 (part of A Royal Garland)
• A May Magnificat for choir and bells Op.79 no.2
• Shakespeare Songs for choir and piano Op.80
• Songs of William Blake for voice, harp, piano, celesta and string orchestra Op.82
• Rex Gloriae for choir Op.83
• Te Deum for soprano, mezzo soprano, tenor soli, choir and orchestra Op.85
• Let the People Praise Thee O God for choir and organ/ orchestra Op.87
• Lux Aeterna Op.88 (no.1)
• All Wisdom is from the Lord for choir and organ Op.88 no.3
• Salvator Mundi for SSA, piano duet, percussion and strings Op.89
• O Be Joyful in the Lord for choir and organ Op.90 no.2
• Let Us Now Praise Famous Men for choir and organ/ orchestra Op.91 no.2
• Missa Aedis Christi (in Memory of William Walton) for choir and organ Op.92
• The Echoing Green for SSAA Op.95 no.2
• Veni Sancte Spiritus for choir, organ, 2 trumpets and percussion Op.96
• Let All the World in Every Corner Sing Op.96 no.2
• Rejoice the Lamb for choir and organ Op.99 no.1
• Cantate Domino for choir and organ (1987)
• Riddles (1987)
• As Truly as God is our Father for choir and organ (1987)
• Sweet was the Song for choir and organ (1988)
• Jonah: A Musical Morality for baritone and tenor soli, semi chorus, choir, and orchestra (1988)
• O Aula Nobilis for SSAA, trumpets, percussion, and piano duet (1989)
• World's Fire for soprano and baritone soli, choir and orchestra (1989)
• Let the People Praise Thee, O God, for the wedding of Prince Charles and Princess Diana Spencer
• Learsongs (1989)
• Bell Carol for choir, brass, percussion and organ (1989)
• The Doctrine of Wisdom for choir and organ (1990)

Orchestral works

• Piano Concerto No.1, Op.2
• Divertimento for String Orchestra, Op.7 (1958)
• Piano Concerto No.2, Op.13
• Music for Strings, Op.14
• Dance Overture, Op.16 (1961)
• Invocation and Dance, Op.17 (1961)
• Serenade for Small Orchestra, Op.18 (1963)
• Prelude, Aria and Finale for String Orchestra, Op.25 (1964)
• Concerto for Orchestra, Op.27
• Symphony no. 1, Op.31 (1966)
• Sinfonietta, Op.34 (1967)
• Litanies, Op.37
• Piano Concerto No.3, Op.40 (1968)
• Festival Overture, Op.42
• Harp Concerto, Op.50 (1970)
• Intrada, Op.54 (1971)
• Harpsichord Concerto, Op.56
• Holiday Overture, Op.57
• Celtic Dances, Op.60 (1972)
• Laudi, Op.62 (1973)
• Clarinet Concerto, Op.68 (1975)
• Vistas, Op.69 (1975)
• Dance Variations, Op.72
• Melos, Op.73
• Vivat Regina, Op.75 for brass band
• Helios, Op.76 (1977)
• Requiescat, Op.79 (1977)
• Reflections on a Theme of Tomkins, Op.86
• Symphony No. 2, Op.90 (Summer Music) (1983)
• Organ Concerto, Op.91 (1984)
• Horn Concerto, Op.93 (1984)
• Anniversary Dances, Op.95
• Oboe Concerto (1989)
• Threnos (1990)
• Symphony No. 3 (1991)
• In Arcadia (1992)
• Violin Concerto (1992)

Chamber Works

• Divertimento, Op.1 for violin and Viola
• Sonatina for clarinet and piano, Op.3
• Violin Sonata No.1, Op.15
• Wind Quintet op. 22 (1963)
• Divertimento, Op.24 for flute, oboe and piano
• Piano Trio, Op.30
• String Quartet No.1, Op.38
• Concertino, Op.65 for flute, oboe, bassoon and harpsichord
• Zodiac Trio for Flute, Viola and Harp
  Flute, Viola and Harp
  Flute, viola and harp are the instruments of a chamber music grouping that have become common through the establishment of ensembles that feature this set of instruments and have enjoyed new compositions written for the set...
  
  , Op.70 (1976
• String Quartet No.2, Op.84
• Violin Sonata No.2, Op.94
• Sonatina for Flute & Piano Op. 98
• String Quartet No.3 (1987)
• Soundings for brass quintet
• Summer Dances for brass quintet

Solo instrumental

• "Suite for Trumpet and Piano Op.4" (1956)
• Improvisations for Harp Op.10 (1960)
• Piano Sonata no.1 Op.23 (1963)
• Piano Sonata no.2 Op.46 (1969)
• Sonata for Harp Op.66
• Santa Fe Suite for harp (1988)
• Toccata alla Danza for piano (1961)

Organ

• Prelude, Elegy and Toccata (1954)
• Partita Op.19
• Variations on a Hymn Tune Op.20
• Postlude (1962)
• Chorale (Easter
  Easter
  Easter is the central feast in the Christian liturgical year. According to the Canonical gospels, Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. His resurrection is celebrated on Easter Day or Easter Sunday...
  
  1966)
• Invocations Op.35
• Toccata Giocosa Op. 36, No. 2. Dedicated to Sir David Willcocks on the occasion of his Inauguration of the new organ at The Royal College of Organists, 7 October, 1967
• Jubilate Op. 67, No. 2 Dedicated to Michael Smythe
• Fantasy for Organ Op.78
• Canzonetta Op. 78, No. 2
• AntiphoniesOp.88 no.2
• Berceuse Op.95 no.3
• Processional Op. 96
• Recessional Op. 96, No. 4. Dedicated to Christopher Morris, musician, publisher, friend
• Carillon
• Fanfare
• Fenestra

External links

• William Mathias at Oxford University Press
• William Mathias, biography & appraisal of his music by David C. F. Wright on MusicWeb International
• Leicestershire Schools Symphony Orchestra website
• Sinfonietta Information and short audio extracts from the 1967 Pye recording.

Interviews

• William Mathias interview by Bruce Duffie