Dame Judith Weir (born 11 May 1954) is a British composer. She served as
Master of the King's Music from 2014 to 2024. Appointed by
Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...
, Weir was the first woman to hold this office.
Early life
Weir was born in
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...
, England, to Scottish parents from Aberdeen.
[Dreyer, Martin. Judith Weir, composer A talent to amuse. The Musical Times. Vol. 122, No. 1663 (Sep., 1981), pp. 593-596.] It was a musical household, with her father playing the trumpet and her mother the viola; the family moved house to
Harrow and she began to play the oboe in her early teens.
She studied with
John Tavener
Sir John Kenneth Tavener (28 January 1944 – 12 November 2013) was an English composer, known for his extensive output of choral religious music, religious works. Among his best known works are ''The Lamb (Tavener), The Lamb'' (1982), ''The ...
while at the
North London Collegiate School and subsequently with
Robin Holloway
Robin Greville Holloway (born 19 October 1943) is an English composer, academic and writer.
Early life
Holloway was born in Leamington Spa. From 1953 to 1957, he was a chorister at St Paul's Cathedral and was educated at King's College School, ...
at
King's College, Cambridge
King's College, formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, is a List of colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college lies beside the River Cam and faces ...
, graduating in 1976.
Career
The first of her works to be heard professionally was ''Where the Shining Trumpets Blow'', given by the
New Philharmonia in 1974.
Before going to Cambridge Weir had a six-month period at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...
learning about computer music and acoustics.
Her work ''Campanile'' "in which a concertino core derived from Bach's
Nun ist das Heil is framed by two
Brahmsian elegies" won the first prize in the International Festival of Youth Orchestras in Aberdeen in 1974 where the jury included
Aaron Copland
Aaron Copland (, ; November 14, 1900December 2, 1990) was an American composer, critic, writer, teacher, pianist, and conductor of his own and other American music. Copland was referred to by his peers and critics as the "Dean of American Compos ...
.
She won a Koussevitzky fellowship the following summer resulting in several compositions including what "she consider
dher true opus 1", ''Out of the Air''. In early 1976 she won the Greater London Arts Association young musicians' composition award.
From 1976 to 1979 Weir was the Composer-in-Residence with the Southern Arts Association in southern England, where she ran courses for children and adults and took part in artistic projects. She lectured at Glasgow University from 1979 to 1982, and similarly from 1983 to 1985 at Trinity College, Cambridge. From 1995 to 2000, she was Artistic Director of the
Spitalfields Festival in London. She held the post of Composer in Association for the
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra from 1995 to 1998.
Weirs music often draws on sources from medieval history, as well as the traditional stories and music of her parents' homeland, Scotland. Although she has achieved international recognition for her orchestral and chamber works, Weir is best known for her operas and theatrical works. Her musical language is fairly conservative, with a "knack of making simple musical ideas appear freshly mysterious".
Her first stage work, ''The Black Spider'', is a one-act opera that was premiered in Canterbury in 1985, loosely based on the
short novel of the same name by
Jeremias Gotthelf. She has subsequently written one more "micro-opera", three full-length operas, and an opera for television. In 1987, her first half-length opera, ''
A Night at the Chinese Opera'', was premiered at
Kent Opera. This was followed by a further three full-length operas: ''
The Vanishing Bridegroom'' (1990); ''
Blond Eckbert'' (1994, commissioned by
English National Opera
English National Opera (ENO) is a British opera company based in London, resident at the London Coliseum in St Martin's Lane. It is one of the two principal opera companies in London, along with The Royal Opera. ENO's productions are sung in E ...
); and ''Miss Fortune (Achterbahn)'' (2011). Her opera ''
Armida'', an opera for television, was premiered on
Channel Four
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded entirely by its commer ...
in the United Kingdom in 2005. The work was made in co-operation with
Margaret Williams. Weir's commissioned works most notably include ''We are Shadows'' (1999) for
Simon Rattle and ''woman.life.song'' (2000) for
Jessye Norman
Jessye Mae Norman (September 15, 1945 – September 30, 2019) was an American opera singer and recitalist. She was able to perform dramatic soprano roles, but did not limit herself to that voice type. A commanding presence on operatic, concert ...
. In January 2008, Weir was the focus of the BBC's annual composer weekend at the
Barbican Centre
The Barbican Centre is a performing arts centre in the Barbican Estate of the City of London, England, and the largest of its kind in Europe. The centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings a ...
in London. The four days of programmes ended with a first performance of her new commission, ''CONCRETE'', a choral motet. The subject of this piece was inspired by the Barbican building itself – she describes it as 'an imaginary excavation of the Barbican Centre, burrowing through 2,500 years of historical rubble'.
She was a visiting distinguished research professor in composition at
Cardiff University
Cardiff University () is a public research university in Cardiff, Wales. It was established in 1883 as the University College of South Wales and Monmouthshire and became a founding college of the University of Wales in 1893. It was renamed Unive ...
from 2006 to 2009.
On 30 June 2014, ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' stated that her appointment as
Master of the Queen's Music
Master of the King's Music (or Master of the Queen's Music, or earlier Master of the King's Musick) is a post in the Royal Household of the United Kingdom. The holder of the post originally served the Kingdom of England, monarch of England, dire ...
,
succeeding
Sir Peter Maxwell Davies (whose term of office expired in March 2014), would be announced;
this was officially confirmed on 21 July. She was appointed for a decade.
The first public performance of Weir's arrangement of "
God Save the Queen
"God Save the King" ("God Save the Queen" when the monarch is female) is '' de facto'' the national anthem of the United Kingdom. It is one of two national anthems of New Zealand and the royal anthem of the Isle of Man, Australia, Canada and ...
" was performed at the reburial of
King Richard III
Richard III (2 October 1452 – 22 August 1485) was King of England from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the Plantagenet dynasty and its cadet branch the House of York. His defeat and death at the Battle of Boswor ...
at
Leicester Cathedral
The Cathedral Church of Saint Martin, Leicester, commonly known as Leicester Cathedral, is a Church of England cathedral in Leicester, England, and the seat of the Bishop of Leicester. One of the city centre's five surviving medieval ch ...
on 26 March 2015. She was commissioned to compose an
a cappella
Music performed a cappella ( , , ; ), less commonly spelled acapella in English, is music performed by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...
work for the
state funeral of Elizabeth II on 19 September 2022, and wrote a setting of
Psalm 42, "
Like as the hart".
In 2023, Weir was one of twelve composers asked to write a new piece for the
coronation of Charles III and Camilla
The Coronation of the British monarch, coronation of Charles III and his wife, Queen Camilla, Camilla, as Monarchy of the United Kingdom, king and List of British royal consorts, queen of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth re ...
. Her composition for orchestra, ''Brighter Visions Shine Afar'', was performed before the ceremony began.
Dame Judith is President of the Royal Society of Musicians of Great Britain (RSM).
Weir is a member of the Incorporated Society of Musicians.
Awards and recognition
Weir was appointed
Commander of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
(CBE) in the
1995 Birthday Honours for services to music.
She received the
Lincoln Center
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5  ...
's
Stoeger Prize in 1997, the
South Bank Show music award in 2001 and the
Incorporated Society of Musicians' Distinguished Musician Award in 2010.
In 2007, she was the third recipient of the
Queen's Medal for Music.
In May 2015, Weir won The Ivors Classical Music Award at the
Ivor Novello Awards
The Ivor Novello Awards, named after the Welsh entertainer Ivor Novello, are awards for songwriting and Musical composition, composing. They have been presented annually in London by the The Ivors Academy, Ivors Academy, formerly called the Britis ...
.
In 2018 she was elected an
Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.
In 2023, she was made an Honorary Fellow of
Royal Holloway, University of London
Royal Holloway, University of London (RH), formally incorporated as Royal Holloway and Bedford New College, is a public university, public research university and a constituent college, member institution of the federal University of London. It ...
.
She was promoted
Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
(DBE) in the
2024 New Year Honours
The 2024 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 15 Commonwealth realms to Orders and decorations of the Commonwealth realms, various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Hono ...
for services to music.
List of compositions
Opera and music theatre
* ''
King Harald's Saga'' (1979,
soprano
A soprano () is a type of classical singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hertz, Hz to A5 in Choir, choral ...
, singing eight roles)
* ''
The Black Spider'' (6 March 1985, Canterbury);
also exists in an expanded version for
Hamburg State Opera
The Hamburg State Opera (in German: ) is a German opera company based in Hamburg. Its theatre is near the square of Gänsemarkt. Since 2015, the current ''Intendant'' of the company is Georges Delnon, and the current ''Generalmusikdirektor'' ...
(8 February 2009, Hamburg)
* ''
The Consolations of Scholarship'' (5 May 1985,
Durham, soprano, chamber ensemble)
* ''
A Night at the Chinese Opera'' (8 July 1987, Cheltenham)
* ''HEAVEN ABLAZE in His Breast'' (5 October 1989, Basildon), based on
E.T.A. Hoffmann's
The Sandman, which won the prize for innovative work at OperaScreen in 1991.
* ''
The Vanishing Bridegroom'' (1990, Glasgow); also exists in a
chamber version (1990)
* ''Scipio's Dream'' (24 November 1991, television broadcast for the
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
), based on ''Il sogno di Scipione'' by
Metastasio
Pietro Antonio Domenico Trapassi (3 January 1698 – 12 April 1782), better known by his pseudonym of Pietro Metastasio (), was an Italian poet and librettist, considered the most important writer of ''opera seria'' libretti.
Early life
Met ...
* ''The Skriker'' (27 January 1994, London) – music for
Caryl Churchill
Caryl Lesley Churchill (born 3 September 1938) is a British playwright known for dramatising the abuses of power, for her use of non- naturalistic techniques, and for her exploration of sexual politics and feminist themes. 's
play
Play most commonly refers to:
* Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment
* Play (theatre), a work of drama
Play may refer also to:
Computers and technology
* Google Play, a digital content service
* Play Framework, a Java framework
* P ...
of the same name
* ''
Blond Eckbert'' (20 April 1994, London); also exists in a so-called "pocket version" (reduced to one act from two) (2006)
* ''
Armida'' (2005, television broadcast for Channel Four in the United Kingdom)
* ''
Miss Fortune (opera) (Achterbahn "rollercoaster")'' (21 July 2011,
Bregenzer Festspiele
Bregenzer Festspiele (; Bregenz Festival) is a performing arts festival which is held every July and August in Bregenz in Vorarlberg (Austria).
It features a large floating stage which is situated on Lake Constance.
History
The Festival becam ...
)
Other compositions
* ''Music for 247 Strings'' (1981, violin, piano)
* ''Thread!'' (1981, narrator,
chamber ensemble
Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of Musical instrument, instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a Great chamber, palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music ...
)
* ''Scotch Minstrelsy'' (1982,
tenor
A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below m ...
or soprano, piano)
* ''The Art of Touching the Keyboard'' (1983, piano)
* ''Missa Del Cid'' (1988, SAAATTTBBB choir), originally part of BBC's ''Sound on Film'' series; later used independently in concert and on stage.
* String Quartet (1990)
* ''Musicians Wrestle Everywhere'' (1994,
flute
The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...
, oboe,
bass clarinet
The bass clarinet is a musical instrument of the clarinet family. Like the more common Soprano clarinet, soprano B clarinet, it is usually pitched in B (meaning it is a transposing instrument on which a written C sounds as B), but it plays no ...
,
horn, trombone, piano, cello, double bass)
* ''Forest'' (1995, orchestra)
*
Piano Concerto
A piano concerto, a type of concerto, is a solo composition in the classical music genre which is composed for piano accompanied by an orchestra or other large ensemble. Piano concertos are typically virtuosic showpieces which require an advance ...
(1997, piano,
strings)
* ''Storm'' (1997, children's choir, SSAA choir, chamber ensemble)
* ''Natural History'' (1998, soprano, orchestra)
* Piano Trio (1998)
* ''We Are Shadows'' (1999, children's choir,
SATB
In music, SATB is a scoring of compositions for choirs or consorts of instruments consisting of four voice types: soprano, alto, tenor and bass.
Choral music
Four-part harmony using soprano, alto, tenor and bass is a common scoring in classic ...
choir, orchestra)
* Piano Quartet (2000)
* ''woman.life.song'' (2000, premiered by
Jessye Norman
Jessye Mae Norman (September 15, 1945 – September 30, 2019) was an American opera singer and recitalist. She was able to perform dramatic soprano roles, but did not limit herself to that voice type. A commanding presence on operatic, concert ...
at
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...
, soprano, chamber ensemble)
* ''
The welcome arrival of rain'' (2001–2002, orchestra)
* ''Tiger Under the Table'' (2002, chamber ensemble)
* ''Piano Trio Two'' (2003–2004)
* ''Winter Song'' (2006, orchestra)
* ''CONCRETE'' (2007, speaker, SATB choir, orchestra)
* ''I give you the end of a golden string'' (2013, strings)
* ''In the Land of Uz'' (2017, SATB choir,
soprano saxophone
The soprano saxophone is a small, high-pitched member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments invented in the 1840s by Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax. Built in B♭ an octave above the tenor saxophone (or rarely, slightly small ...
, trumpet, tuba, organ, viola, double bass)
*
Oboe Concerto (2018, oboe, orchestra)
* The Prelude (2018–2019, flute, violin, viola, cello)
* ''The True Light'' (2018, SATB choir, organ) for the
First World War centenary
* ''By Wisdom'' (2018, SATB choir, organ) for the
Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II
The Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II was the international celebration in 2022 marking the Platinum jubilee, 70th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II on 6 February 1952. It was the first time that any History of monarchy in the U ...
* ''On White Meadows'' (2020, mezzo-soprano and piano)
* ''Music, Spread Thy Voice'' (2022, orchestra) for the 150th Anniversary of the
Royal Orchestral Society
* ''
Like as the hart'' (2022, SATB choir, organ) for the
state funeral of Elizabeth II.
*
* ''
Begin Afresh'' (2022, orchestra)
* ''Brighter Visions Shine Afar'' (2023, orchestra) for the
coronation of Charles III and Camilla
The Coronation of the British monarch, coronation of Charles III and his wife, Queen Camilla, Camilla, as Monarchy of the United Kingdom, king and List of British royal consorts, queen of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth re ...
Recordings
''Blond Eckbert''Nicholas Folwell (baritone), Blond Eckbert;
Anne-Marie Owens,
Christopher Ventris, Nerys Jones; Chorus and Orchestra of English National Opera;
Sian Edwards (conductor) Collins Classics: CD14612 / NMC: NMC D106 (2006)
''In the Land of Uz''– Yale Schola Cantorum, David Hill. Hyperion CDA68466 (2025)
''King Harald's Saga''– Judith Weir,
Ailish Tynan,
Iain Burnside. Cala CACD88040 (2006)
''A Night at the Chinese Opera''– Andrew Parrott, Scottish Chamber Orchestra. NMC D060 (2000)
''Piano Concerto; Distance and Enchantment; various other chamber works''– William Howard, Schubert Ensemble. NMC D090 (2002)
''On Buying a Horse: The songs of Judith Weir''On Buying a Horse; Ox Mountain Was Covered by Trees; Songs from the Exotic; Scotch Minstrelsy; The Voice of Desire; A Spanish Liederbooklet; King Harald's Saga; Ständchen.
Susan Bickley (mezzo-soprano),
Andrew Kennedy (tenor),
Ailish Tynan (soprano),
Ian Burnside (piano) Signum SIGCD087 (2006)
''The Vanishing Bridegroom'' Ailish Tynan (soprano), Anna Stéphany (soprano), Andrew Tortise (tenor), Owen Gilhooly (baritone),
Jonathan Lemalu (bass-baritone), BBC Singers, BBC Symphony Orchestra;
Martyn Brabbins
Martyn Charles Brabbins (born 13 August 1959) is a British conductor.
Biography
The fourth of five children in his family, he learned to play the euphonium, and then the trombone during his youth at Towcester Studio Brass Band. He later studi ...
(conductor) – NMC D196 (2014)
References
Citations
Sources
* Warrack, John and West, Ewan (1992), ''The Oxford Dictionary of Opera'', 782 pages, ,
External links
Achterbahn Bregenz 2011
Judith Weir on the British Music Collection
{{DEFAULTSORT:Weir, Judith
1954 births
20th-century British classical composers
21st-century British classical composers
Academics of Cardiff University
Alumni of King's College, Cambridge
British opera composers
Classical composers of church music
Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire
English people of Scottish descent
British women opera composers
Honorary members of the Royal Academy of Music
Honorary Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
Living people
Masters of the King's Music
People educated at North London Collegiate School
Musicians from Cambridge
20th-century British women composers
21st-century British women composers
Composers awarded damehoods