The ''Durham Concerto'' is a classical work composed by

Jon Lord John Douglas "Jon" Lord (9 June 194116 July 2012) was an English keyboardist and composer. In 1968, Lord co-founded the hard rock band Deep Purple. Lord performed on most of the band's most popular songs; he and drummer Ian Paice were the only ...

. It was commissioned by

Durham University Durham University (legally the University of Durham) is a collegiate university, collegiate public university, public research university in Durham, England, founded by an Act of Parliament (UK), Act of Parliament in 1832 and incorporated by r ...

and was first performed in

Durham Cathedral Durham Cathedral, formally the , is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Durham, England. The cathedral is the seat of the bishop of Durham and is the Mother Church#Cathedral, mother church of the diocese of Durham. It also contains the ...

on 20 October 2007, as part of the university's 175th anniversary celebrations. Instead of the usual solo instrument typical of a classical

concerto A concerto (; plural ''concertos'', or ''concerti'' from the Italian plural) is, from the late Baroque era, mostly understood as an instrumental composition, written for one or more soloists accompanied by an orchestra or other ensemble. The ...

, the ''Durham Concerto'' gives solo opportunities to several different instruments:

cello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...

violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...

Northumbrian pipes The Northumbrian smallpipes (also known as the Northumbrian pipes) are bellows-blown bagpipes from Northeastern England, where they have been an important factor in the local musical culture for more than 250 years. The family of the Duke of ...

and

Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert, first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, sound was created ...

. At the premiere of the work, Lord himself played the Hammond organ part, and

Kathryn Tickell Kathryn Tickell, Order of the British Empire, OBE, Deputy Lieutenant, DL (born 8 June 1967) is an English musician, noted for playing the Northumbrian smallpipes and fiddle. Music career Early life Kathryn Tickell was born in Walsall, to parent ...

the pipes.

Movements

* Part I. Morning ** The Cathedral at Dawn – solo violin, solo cello, Hammond organ ** Durham Awakes – solo violin, solo cello, Hammond organ, Northumbrian pipes * Part II. Afternoon ** The Road from

Lindisfarne Lindisfarne, also known as Holy Island, is a tidal island off the northeast coast of England, which constitutes the civil parishes in England, civil parish of Holy Island in Northumberland. Holy Island has a recorded history from the 6th centu ...

– solo violin, solo cello, Northumbrian pipes< ** From

Prebends Bridge Prebends Bridge, along with Framwellgate and Elvet bridges, is one of three stone-arch bridges in the centre of Durham, England, that cross the River Wear. History Prebends Bridge was designed by George Nicholson and built from 1772 to 1778. ...

– solo cello * Part III. Evening ** Rags &

Gala Gala may refer to: Music * ''Gala'' (album), a 1990 album by the English alternative rock band Lush * Gala (singer), Italian singer and songwriter *'' Gala – The Collection'', a 2016 album by Sarah Brightman * GALA Choruses, an association of ...

s – solo violin, solo cello, Hammond organ ** Durham

Nocturne A nocturne is a musical composition that is inspired by, or evocative of, the night. History The term ''nocturne'' (from French '' nocturne'' "of the night") was first applied to musical pieces in the 18th century, when it indicated an ensembl ...

– solo violin, solo cello, Hammond organ, Northumbrian pipes A typical performance lasts just under an hour.

Recordings

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra Royal Liverpool Philharmonic is a music organisation based in Liverpool, England, that manages a professional symphony orchestra, a concert venue, and extensive programmes of learning through music. Its orchestra, the Royal Liverpool Philharmo ...

Mischa Damev Mischa Damev (born 1963 in Sofia) is a Bulgarian-Swiss orchestral conductor. He received his first musical training from his grandfather, the Bulgarian conductor Mihail Lefterov. When he was 10, his family moved from Bulgaria to Switzerland, where ...

(conductor), Matthew Barley (cello), Jon Lord (Hammond organ),

Ruth Palmer Ruth Palmer is a British violinist. Career * She graduated from the Royal Academy of Music in 2000 with 1st class honours, the 'Roth Prize' for best violin final recital and the 'Lesley Alexander Award' for excellence. She won a Hattori Found ...

(violin),

(Northumbrian pipes) • Avie • ASIN B000ZOWOCS • 28 January 2008

References

{{Authority control Compositions by Jon Lord

Lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the Peerage o ...

2007 compositions