Alun Hoddinott

Alun Hoddinott CBE (11 August 1929 – 12 March 2008) was a Welsh composer of classical music, one of the first to receive international recognition. Life and works Hoddinott was born in Bargoed, Glamorganshire, Wales. His first major composition, the Clarinet Concerto, was performed at the Cheltenham Festival of 1954 by Gervase de Peyer with the Hallé Orchestra and Sir John Barbirolli. This brought Hoddinott a national profile, which was followed by a string of commissions by leading orchestras and soloists. These commissions continued up to his death, and he was championed by some of the most distinguished singers and instrumentalists of the 20th century. These include singers such as Dame Margaret Price, Dame Gwyneth Jones, Sir Thomas Allen, Jill Gomez, Sir Geraint Evans and more recently Claire Booth, Helen Field, Gail Pearson and Jeremy Huw Williams. Instrumentalists have included Ruggiero Ricci, Mstislav Rostropovich, Dennis Brain, Osian Ellis, Cecil Aronowitz, Nia Harries, Roger Woodward and John Ogdon to name a few, and more recently euphonium player David Childs, cellist Kathryn Price, trombonist Mark Eager and song pianist Andrew Matthews-Owen. Hoddinott was prolific, writi