Composer of the Week - William Walton (1902-1983)

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William Walton composed music for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II and King George VI, pieces of pomp and circumstance. But Walton grew up far from Buckingham Palace and the world of the Windsors, in the northern working-class town of Oldham, seemingly destined to work at the cotton mill. Even when he escaped to Oxford and then London, making high-society friends such as the Sitwells, his early music was intense and avant-garde - not at all suitable for a royal affair. So how did Walton become the royal composer of choice? This week, we’ll find out.

Music Featured:

Coronation Te Deum Litany Façade: 2. En famille Portsmouth Point Sinfonia Concertante Façade (extracts) Viola Concerto As You Like It: A Poem for Orchestra after Shakespeare Symphony No 1 Crown Imperial Violin Concerto Henry V Hamlet Troilus and Cressida (excerpts) Orb and Sceptre Cello Concerto

Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Alice McKee

For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for William Walton (1902-1983) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001lbzn

And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z

Published on Friday, 5th May 2023.

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