Luke Bedford (born 25 April 1978) is a British composer. He studied composition with Edwin Roxburgh and

Simon Bainbridge Simon Bainbridge (30 August 1952 – 2 April 2021) was a British composer. He was also a professor and head of composition at the Royal Academy of Music, London, and visiting professor at the University of Louisville, Kentucky, in the United S ...

at the

Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music is a music school, conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the Undergraduate education, undergraduate to the Doctorate, doctoral level in a ...

, and won the Mendelssohn Scholarship in 2000. This was followed by post-graduate study with Simon Bainbridge at the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire 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 first Duke ...

. In 2007 Bedford signed to Universal Edition London. Awards include the 2000

Royal Philharmonic Society The Royal Philharmonic Society (RPS) is a British music society, formed in 1813. Its original purpose was to promote performances of instrumental music in London. Many composers and performers have taken part in its concerts. It is now a mem ...

Composition Prize for composers under 29 and the 2004

BBC Radio 3 BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also featuring. The st ...

Listeners' Award at the

British Composer Awards The Ivors Academy (formerly the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors – BASCA) is one of the largest professional associations for music writers in Europe. The academy exists to support, protect, and campaign for the interests ...

. In 2007, Bedford became the first compositional recipient of a Paul Hamlyn Artists' Award since David Sawer in 1993. 2007 also saw him receive a nomination for the

large-scale composition prize, for his song cycle ''On Voit Tout En Aventure''. In 2008, Bedford received his second British Composer Award for his 2007 orchestral work ''Wreathe''. In 2012, he was awarded the Ernst von Siemens Composers' Prize. Bedford was the Wigmore Hall's first ever Composer-in-Residence, from 2008-2011. In 2015 his work for large orchestra, Instability, was premiered at the Proms, and in October 2017 his Concerto for Saxophone Quartet & Orchestra had its premiere at the Berlin Philharmonie. Bedford has written two operas, Seven Angels with librettist Glyn Maxwell, and Through His Teeth with David Harrower. Both have received multiple performances both in the UK and Germany. In 2018 Bastille Musique released a studio recording of Through His Teeth, performed by Opera Factory Freiburg. Luke is married, lives in Shrewsbury, and plays cricket.

Selected works

;Stage * ''Seven Angels'', Chamber Opera in 2 acts for 7 singers and 12 instruments (2009–2011) * ''Through His Teeth'', Opera in 1 act for 3 singers and 8 musician (2013) ;Orchestral * ''Rode with Darkness'' (2003) * ''Outblaze the Sky'' (2007) * ''Wreathe'' (2007) * ''Più Mosso'' for large orchestra (2009) * ''Instability'' (2015) * Concerto for saxophone Quartet and orchestra (2017) ;Concertante * ''Wonderful Two-Headed Nightingale'' for violin solo, viola solo and 15 players (2011) ;Ensemble * ''Five Abstracts'' for 14 players (2000–2001) * ''Catafalque'' for large ensemble (2002) * ''Man Shoots Strangers from Skyscraper'' for 8 players (2002) * ''Slow Music'' for 8 players (2005) * ''Or Voit Tout En Aventure'' for soprano and 16 players (2006) * ''By the Screen in the Sun at the Hill on the Gold'' for 18 players (2008) * ''Self-Assembly Composition No. 1'' for any instruments (2009) ;Chamber and instrumental music * ''Chiaroscuro'' for violin, cello and piano (2002–2005) * ''Of the Air'' for string quartet (2008–2009) * ''Great Bass Rackett'' for solo bassoon (2009) * ''Faraway Canons'' for piano and bass drum (2018) ;Piano * ''Catafalque'' (2002) ;Vocal * ''Good Dream She Has'' for soprano, mezzo-soprano, tenor and chamber ensemble (2007) * ''On Time'' for choir and orchestra (2008) * ''Upon St. George's Hill'' for tenor and guitar (2008)

External links

Luke Bedford
biography and works on the UE website (publisher) *
Interview with Luke Bedford, LSO and UBS Sound Adventures
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bedford, Luke 1978 births 21st-century classical composers English classical composers Living people People from Wokingham Alumni of the Royal College of Music Alumni of the Royal Academy of Music Mendelssohn Prize winners International Rostrum of Composers prize-winners English male classical composers Ernst von Siemens Composers' Prize winners 21st-century British male musicians