Charles Groves
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Sir Charles Groves (March 10, 1915 - June 20, 1992), was a British conductor.
Groves was born in London, and trained at the Royal College of Music. He was conductor for the BBC Northern Orchestra (1944-1951), the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra (1951-1961), and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra (1963-1977).
He was musical director of both the Welsh National Opera (1961-1963) and the English National Opera (1978-1979). In addition, he was president of the National Youth Orchestra (1977-1992) and from 1967 till his death he was associate conductor of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
The companies for whom he made recordings (chiefly EMI) tended to pigeonhole Groves as a specialist in British music. In the concert hall, however, his repertoire was wide-ranging. He was the first English conductor to perform all Mahler’s symphonies, and was noted for encouraging modern composers and programming their works.
He was knighted in 1973. The Making Music | Sir Charles Groves Prize is a national award, named in his honour, which is given to an individual or organisation making an outstanding contribution to British music. The Royal Northern College of Music has a student accommodation building named after him.
In the 1970s he was one of the regular conductors of the Last Night of the Proms (the others being Norman Del Mar and James Loughran).
[edit] Selected discography
- Arnold: Symphony No 2
- Beethoven: Symphony No 4
- Bliss: Morning Heroes
- Havergal Brian: Symphonies 8 & 9
- Frank Bridge: Enter Spring, The Sea, Summer
- Benjamin Britten: Variations on a theme of Frank Bridge
- George Butterworth: The Banks of Green Willow
- Frederick Delius: Koanga, A Mass of Life, On hearing the first cuckoo in Spring
- Edward Elgar: Caractacus, Cello Concerto (Paul Tortelier, cello), Chanson de matin, Chanson de nuit, Crown of India Suite, Enigma Variations, The Light of Life, Nursery Suite, Serenade for Strings, Severn Suite, Violin Concerto (Hugh Bean, violin)
- Fauré: Masques et bergamasques, Pavane
- Haydn: Symphony No 92, 'Oxford', Symphony No 104, 'London'
- Holst: Choral Symphony, The Planets, St. Paul's Suite
- Ravel: Pavane pour une infante défunte
- Satie: Gymnopédies
- Sullivan: Overture Di Ballo, Overtures to Savoy Operas, Symphony in E (Irish)
- Tippett: Fantasia concertante on a Theme of Corelli
- Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, Hugh the Drover
- Tchaikovsky: Variations on a Rococo Theme (Tortelier)
- Walton: Capriccio burlesco, Crown Imperial, Hamlet Funeral March, Johannesburg Festival Overture, Orb and Sceptre, Richard III Prelude and Suite, Scapino, Spitfire Prelude & Fugue
- Warlock: Capriol Suite
| Preceded by: Rudolf Schwarz |
Principal Conductor, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra 1951–1961 |
Succeeded by: Constantin Silvestri |
| Preceded by: Sir John Pritchard |
Principal Conductor, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra 1963–1977 |
Succeeded by: Walter Weller |
| Preceded by: Sir Charles Mackerras |
Music Director, English National Opera 1978–1979 |
Succeeded by: Mark Elder |
