Gareth Glyn, born Gareth Glynne Davies (born 1951), is a Welsh

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

and radio broadcaster.

Life and education

Born in

Machynlleth Machynlleth () is a market town, community and electoral ward in Powys, Wales and within the historic boundaries of Montgomeryshire. It is in the Dyfi Valley at the intersection of the A487 and the A489 roads. At the 2001 Census it had a po ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, Glyn is the eldest son of the late Welsh poet T. Glynne Davies. He received his secondary education at Ysgol Maes Garmon in

Mold A mold () or mould () is one of the structures that certain fungus, fungi can form. The dust-like, colored appearance of molds is due to the formation of Spore#Fungi, spores containing Secondary metabolite#Fungal secondary metabolites, fungal ...

, before attending

Merton College Merton College (in full: The House or College of Scholars of Merton in the University of Oxford) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Its foundation can be traced back to the 1260s when Walter de Merton, chancellor ...

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

, 1969–72, studying

music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...

and specialising in composition.

Compositions

He has composed a wide range of musical pieces, including diverse vocal and orchestral work and music for television. He has produced one

symphony A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning c ...

, and many of his recorded orchestral works are in the light music genre, including ''A Snowdon Overture'', ''Legend of the Lake'' and ''Anglesey Seascapes''. In 2011, to coincide with his 60th birthday, a double CD of a selection of his orchestral works was released by Sain, including the substantial ''Enduring City'' celebrating the 300th anniversary of the founding of the city of

New Bern New Bern, formerly Newbern, is a city in Craven County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. It had a population of 31,291 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is located at the confluence of the Neuse River, Neuse a ...

. In 2012, he was selected to provide the arrangement of Elgar's ''Nimrod'' for the opening ceremony of the London

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

; it was played by 80 East London children, some of them beginners on their instruments and aged as young as 7, alongside a small number of

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's orchestras, symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's ...

(LSO) members. It is estimated that this broadcast was seen by a billion or more viewers worldwide. Orchestras who have commissioned and/or performed his compositions include - in addition to the LSO - the

BBC Concert Orchestra The BBC Concert Orchestra is a British concert orchestra based in London, one of the British Broadcasting Corporation's five radio orchestras. With around fifty players, it is the only one of the five BBC orchestras which is not a full-scale sym ...

, the North Carolina Symphony, the Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra, the

Ulster Orchestra The Ulster Orchestra is a full-time professional orchestra in Northern Ireland. Based in Belfast, the orchestra plays the majority of its concerts in Belfast's Ulster Hall and Waterfront Hall. It also gives concerts across the United Kingdom ...

, the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, I Musici de Montréal and the Royal Ballet Sinfonia; soloists include

Bryn Terfel Bryn Terfel Jones (; born 9 November 1965), is a Welsh bass-baritone opera and concert singer. Terfel was initially primarily associated with the roles of Mozart, particularly '' Figaro'', '' Leporello'' and ''Don Giovanni,'' but he has subsequ ...

and

Catrin Finch Catrin Ana Finch is a Welsh people, Welsh harpist, arranger and composer. She was the Official Harpist to the Prince of Wales from 2000 to 2004 and is visiting professor at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama and the Royal Academy of Music ...

. For his services to music, Gareth Glyn was made an Honorary Fellow of the

Bangor University Bangor University () is a Public university, public Research university, research university in Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales. It was established by Royal charter, Royal Charter in 1885 as the University College of North Wales (UCNW; ), and in 1893 ...

, and an Honorary Druid of the

Gorsedd Gorsedd Cymru (), or simply the Gorsedd (), is a society of Welsh-language poets, writers, musicians and others who have contributed to the Welsh language and to public life in Wales. Its aim is to honour such individuals and help develop and p ...

of Bards of the Island of Britain. He has made “a significant contribution to the music of Wales”.

Broadcasting

Glyn used to present the news and current affairs programme ''Post Prynhawn'', broadcast on

BBC Radio Cymru BBC Radio Cymru is a Welsh language radio station owned and operated by BBC Cymru Wales, a division of the BBC. It broadcasts across Wales on FM, DAB, digital TV and BBC Sounds. The station broadcasts general factual and entertainment pro ...

from Mondays to Fridays in the 5–6pm slot. He was the programme's main presenter from when it was first broadcast in 1978 until January 2013.

References

External links

BBC website biography

Biography on Sibeliusmusic.comGareth Glyn's personal website

Biography at publishers Gwynn
{{DEFAULTSORT:Glyn, Gareth Living people 1951 births People from Machynlleth Welsh radio presenters British light music composers Welsh classical composers Welsh male classical composers Alumni of Merton College, Oxford