Ifan Williams (November 1889,

Carmarthen, Wales Carmarthen (, ; , 'Merlin's fort' or possibly 'Sea-town fort') is the county town of Carmarthenshire and a community (Wales), community in Wales, lying on the River Towy north of its estuary in Carmarthen Bay. At the 2021 United Kingdom cen ...

- September 1957,

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

) was a Canadian

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 ...

ist,

conductor Conductor or conduction may refer to: Biology and medicine * Bone conduction, the conduction of sound to the inner ear * Conduction aphasia, a language disorder Mathematics * Conductor (ring theory) * Conductor of an abelian variety * Cond ...

, and

music educator Music education is a field of practice in which educators are trained for careers as elementary or secondary music teachers, school or music conservatory ensemble directors. Music education is also a research area in which scholars do origina ...

of Welsh birth. He should not be confused with his son, the cellist Ifan Williams (b. 1945,

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and most populous municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the most populous municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of 2024, it is estimated that the population of the H ...

Education and career

Ifan Williams was trained as a musician at the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is one of the oldest music schools in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the firs ...

in London where he was the first violinist of the RAM's

string quartet The term string quartet refers to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two Violin, violini ...

and

concertmaster The concertmaster (from the German language, German ''Konzertmeister''), first chair (U.S.) or leader (UK) is the principal first violin player in an orchestra (clarinet or oboe in a concert band). After the Conducting, conductor, the concertma ...

of the school's orchestra. He was the winner of numerous violin competitions and music scholarships, and following graduation worked as a concert violinist in London and the surrounding provinces. He also worked as an ensemble musician in the

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) and the orchestra of the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is a theatre in Covent Garden, central London. The building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. The ROH is the main home of The Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orch ...

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist sit ...

, and as a member of the Blagrove String Quartette. His brother, the cellist Geraint Williams, was also a member of the LSO. In 1920 Williams immigrated to Canada; settling in Halifax, Nova Scotia where he ultimately became a naturalized Canadian. He was the head of the string program at the

Maritime Conservatory of Performing Arts The Maritime Conservatory of Performing Arts (the Conservatory) is a Canadian performing arts school in Halifax, Nova Scotia, that offers courses in higher education in music, dance, and theatre. It is the largest and the oldest (1887) of such orga ...

(then known as the Halifax Conservatory) from 1920 to 1934; and then was promoted to director of the conservatory; a post he held from 1934 until his death in 1957. He was also the conductor of conservatory's orchestra during his tenure at the school. In 1922 Williams founded the Halifax Choral Society and was that group's first conductor. In 1935 he founded the Halifax Music Festival.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Iffan 1889 births 1957 deaths Alumni of the Royal Academy of Music Canadian conductors (music) Welsh conductors (music) Canadian male classical violinists 20th-century Canadian classical violinists Welsh classical violinists 20th-century British violinists British male violinists People from Carmarthen Welsh emigrants to Canada London Symphony Orchestra players Players of the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House