Lyndon Jeffrey Frank Watts (born 19 January 1976) is an Australian

bassoon The bassoon is a musical instrument in the woodwind family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuosity ...

ist. He is principal bassoonist of the

Münchner Philharmoniker The Munich Philharmonic () is a German symphony orchestra located in the city of Munich. It is one of Munich's four principal orchestras, along with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Munich Radio Orchestra and the Bavarian State Orche ...

and an academic teacher.

Professional career

Watts studied the bassoon from 1988 and completed his senior school education at

Newington College Newington College is a multi-campus Independent school, independent Uniting Church in Australia, Uniting Church Single-sex education, single-sex and Mixed-sex education, co-educational Pre-school education, early learning, Primary school, primar ...

in 1993. He collaborated with the

Sydney Symphony Orchestra The Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) is an Australian symphony orchestra based in Sydney. With roots going back to 1908, the orchestra was made a permanent professional orchestra on the formation of the Australian Broadcasting Commission in 1932. ...

from 1992 to 1993, winning prizes at Australian competitions. From 1994 he studied at the

Hochschule für Musik und Theater München The University of Music and Theatre Munich (), also known as the Munich Conservatory, is a performing arts music school, conservatory in Munich, Germany. The main building it currently occupies is the former ''Führerbau'' of the NSDAP, locate ...

with Eberhard Marschall and, in 2000, finished his master's degree with distinction. In 1997 Watts won the international music competition ''pacem in terris'' of

Bayreuth Bayreuth ( or ; High Franconian German, Upper Franconian: Bareid, ) is a Town#Germany, town in northern Bavaria, Germany, on the Red Main river in a valley between the Franconian Jura and the Fichtel Mountains. The town's roots date back to 11 ...

. In 2000 he was awarded the Yamaha Scholarship for Woodwind Instruments, which he used to study Baroque bassoon from 2001 to 2005 with Alberto Grazzi in Verona. He won a third prize at the

ARD International Music Competition The ARD International Music Competition () is the largest international classical music competition in Germany. It is organised by the Bayerischer Rundfunk and is held once a year in Munich, usually in September. Since its inception in 1952, it h ...

in 2002, he was the first Australian woodwind player in the competition's history to win a prize, and an "award for the best interpretation of the commissioned work by

Heinz Holliger Heinz Robert Holliger (born 21 May 1939) is a Swiss composer, virtuoso oboist, and conductor. Celebrated for his versatility and technique, Holliger is among the most prominent oboists of his generation. His repertoire includes Baroque and Clas ...

", ''Klaus-ur'' from ''Three Pieces'' for bassoon. Holliger's composition was recorded by the

Bayerischer Rundfunk (; "Bavarian Broadcasting"), shortened to BR (), is a public broadcasting, public-service radio and television broadcaster, based in Munich, capital city of the Bavaria, Free State of Bavaria in Germany. BR is a member organization of the ARD (b ...

on the CD ''21st Century Instrumental Solos'', a collection of works commissioned by the ARD competition since 2002. On another recording of the prizewinners of 2002 he plays Mozart's

bassoon concerto A bassoon concerto is a concerto for bassoon accompanied by a musical ensemble, typically orchestra. Like bassoon sonatas, bassoon concerti were relatively uncommon until the twentieth century, although there are quite a few bassoon concerti fro ...

with the

Münchener Kammerorchester The Munich Chamber Orchestra (, or MKO) is a German chamber orchestra based in Munich. Its primary concert venue is the Prinzregententheater, Munich. The MKO also gives concerts in Munich at such venues as the Pinakothek der Moderne and the ', an ...

. Since 1998 Watts has been principal bassoonist of the

. He has also performed as a soloist with the

Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra The Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (, BRSO) is a German radio orchestra. Based in Munich, Germany, it is one of the city's four orchestras. The BRSO is one of two full-size symphony orchestras operated under the auspices of Bayerischer Rundf ...

and the Münchener Kammerorchester. At the 2004 conference of the

International Double Reed Society The International Double Reed Society (IDRS), is an organization that promotes the interests of double reed players, instrument manufacturers and enthusiasts. Services provided by the IDRS include an international oboe and bassoon competition, an ...

(IDRS) he appeared with the

Melbourne Symphony Orchestra The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (MSO) is an Australian orchestra based in Melbourne. The MSO is resident at Hamer Hall. The MSO has its own choir, the MSO Chorus, following integration with the Melbourne Chorale in 2008. The MSO relies on fun ...

. He is a supporter of the

Australian World Orchestra The Australian World Orchestra (AWO) is a symphony orchestra based in Australia. History The Australian World Orchestra was established in 2011 by Australian conductor Alexander Briger and his sister, film maker Gabrielle Thompson. The inaug ...

, founded in 2010. As a chamber musician, he commissioned and first performed in 2001 the first of four quartets for a woodwind instrument and string trio, called "Finnische Quartette", by

Jörg Duda Jörg Duda (born 17 December 1968) is a German composer of classical music. Life and career Born in Munich, Duda was influenced by the church music of Scheyern Abbey. He took lessons in organ and improvisation with Harald Feller, in theory an ...

. In 2003 he premiered the Bassoon Quintet of

Graham Waterhouse Graham Waterhouse (born 2 November 1962) is an English composer and cellist who specializes in chamber music. He has composed a cello concerto, '' Three Pieces for Solo Cello'' and '' Variations for Cello Solo'' for his own instrument, and str ...

at the

Gasteig The Gasteig is a currently closed cultural center in Munich, opened in 1985, which hosts the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra. The Richard Strauss Conservatory, the Volkshochschule, and the municipal library are all located in the Gasteig. Most ...

. At the 2009 IDRS conference in Birmingham he played in several recitals, for example with bassoonist Thomas Eberhardt ''Lacrimosa'' of

Louis Andriessen Louis Joseph Andriessen (; 6 June 1939 – 1 July 2021) was a Dutch composer, pianist and academic teacher. Considered the most influential Dutch composer of his generation, he was a central proponent of The Hague school of composition. Although ...

, Holliger's ''Three Pieces'',

Sofia Gubaidulina Sofia Asgatovna Gubaidulina (24 October 1931 – 13 March 2025) was a Soviet and Russian composer of Modernism (music), modernist Holy minimalism, sacred music. She was highly prolific, producing numerous Chamber music, chamber, Orchestra, orch ...

's Duo for two bassoons, and the premiere of

Bernd Redmann Bernd Redmann (born 10 May 1965 in Bamberg) is a German composer, music theorist, and musicologist. Career Born in Bamberg, Bernd Redmann studied at the University of Music and Theatre Munich, music pedagogy and composition with Dieter Acker ...

's ''Secret doors'' for two bassoons and orchestra. In December 2009 he took part in the festival of

contemporary music Contemporary music is whatever music is produced at the current time. Specifically, it could refer to: Genres or audiences * Adult contemporary music * British contemporary R&B * Christian adult contemporary * Christian contemporary hit radio * Con ...

''Klangaktionen'' in Munich. In 2011 he premiered Redmann's ''Migrant'' for bassoon and string quartet in Munich. Playing a Baroque bassoon built by Peter de Koningh after Eichentopf, Watts recorded arrangements of arias from

Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel ( ; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concerti. Born in Halle, Germany, H ...

's operas, "The Gentleman's Flute", in an ensemble with Stefan Temmingh, recorder, and his wife Olga Watts,

harpsichord A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a musical keyboard, keyboard. Depressing a key raises its back end within the instrument, which in turn raises a mechanism with a small plectrum made from quill or plastic that plucks one ...

, among others. Watts was one of 16 bassoonists in the concert '' The Proud Bassoon'', celebrating William Waterhouse on 16 April 2011 in

Wigmore Hall The Wigmore Hall is a concert hall at 36 Wigmore Street, in west London. It was designed by Thomas Edward Collcutt and opened in 1901 as the Bechstein Hall; it is considered to have particularly good building acoustics, acoustics. It specialis ...

. He played Waterhouse's arrangement for two bassoon choirs of

Giovanni Gabrieli Giovanni Gabrieli (/1557 – 12 August 1612) was an Italian composer and organist. He was one of the most influential musicians of his time, and represents the culmination of the style of the Venetian School (music), Venetian School, at the t ...

's ''Sonata Pian' e Forte'',

Anton Reicha Anton (Antonín, Antoine) Joseph Reicha (Rejcha) (26 February 1770 – 28 May 1836) was a Czech-born, Bavarian-educated, later naturalization, naturalized French composer and music theorist. A contemporary and lifelong friend of Ludwig van Be ...

's Quintet for bassoon and strings, on an 1807 instrument from Waterhouse's collection, and the

Divertissement ''Divertissement'' (from the French 'diversion' or 'amusement') is used, in a similar sense to the Italian 'divertimento', for a light piece of music for a small group of players, however the French term has additional meanings. During the 17th an ...

for bassoon and string quintet of

Jean Francaix Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Jean ...

, dedicated to Waterhouse. Watts taught the bassoon at the

between 2002 and 2007, and has worked as a professor at the Bern University of the Arts since October 2005. He has conducted regular courses in Switzerland and Germany, and masterclasses in England, Portugal, Australia, Japan, China and Korea, such as a masterclass of the Australasian Double Reed Society in 2008. He has been a teacher for the Junge Münchner Philharmonie.

References

External links

Lyndon Watts
website
Lyndon Watts
Münchner Philharmoniker
Romantische Bläsermusik auf Originalinstrumenten

Deutsches Museum The Deutsches Museum (''German Museum'', officially (English: ''German Museum of Masterpieces of Science and Technology'')) in Munich, Germany, is the world's largest museum of science museum, science and technology museum, technology, with a ...

2010 {{DEFAULTSORT:Watts, Lyndon 1976 births Living people People educated at Newington College Australian classical bassoonists University of Music and Theatre Munich alumni Academic staff of the University of Music and Theatre Munich Australian academics Australian expatriates in Germany Players of the Munich Philharmonic