Alun Hoddinott - Welsh Men, Timeline and Childhood
Alun Hoddinott's Personal Details
A welsh music composer and teacher, Alun Hoddinott was a pioneer of contemporary music
| Information | Detail |
|---|---|
| Birthday | August 11, 1929 |
| Died on | March 12, 2008 |
| Nationality | Welsh |
| Famous | Musicians, Composers, Welsh Men |
| Known as | Hoddinott |
| Universities |
|
| Birth Place | Glamorgan |
| Gender | Male |
| Sun Sign | Leo |
| Born in | Glamorgan |
| Famous as | Composer |
| Died at Age | 78 |
// Famous Welsh Men
Leondre Antonio Devries
Leondre Devries is a British Rapper. Let’s have a look at his family & personal life including age, net worth, girlfriends, and fun facts.
George Herbert
George Herbert was a famous English poet and Anglican priest. He is best known for his collection of poems, “The Temple”. To know more about him, read on this brief biography in the lines below.
Sir Clive William John Granger
Clive. W.J. Granger is a Nobel Prize winning economist and a trendsetter in economic science. With this biography, explore all about Clive Granger’s profile and life.
Alun Hoddinott's photo
Who is Alun Hoddinott?
Since his childhood days, Alun Hoddinott was attracted to music and he started learning the violin, which is considered to be the instrument of choice of a composer. His works started gaining attention while he was a student. His music was known for having deep sensuality and dark undertones. The author used to work in the dark recesses of night, thus most of his pieces were based in a nocturnal setting and the music used to perfectly blend with such settings. Apart from being a prolific composer, this musician was also an outstanding teacher. During his career at the ‘Cardiff College’, which was later known as ‘University College’, he polished many budding talents and provided them a platform in the form of ‘Cardiff Festival of Twentieth Century Music’. He was a generous personality who always encouraged their friends and colleagues to pursue their interests. As a composer, the man worked with a rare ferocity and generally baffled his contemporaries with the speed he composed. His works were of a diverse nature and had explored all forms of music including operas, symphonies and concertos. In the course of his glorious career, he had composed over 300 individual works including six operas. The ‘BBC National Orchestra of Wales’ organised the gala opening of the composer’s last work, ‘Taliesin’, at the ‘Swansea Festival of Music’ in 2009 after his death. To know more about the composer read on
// Famous Composers
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig Van Beethoven was one of the greatest composers the world has ever had. Check out this biography to know about his childhood, family life, and achievements.
Emina Jahović
Emina Jahović Sandal is a Serbian model, actress and singer-songwriter. Know more about her childhood, life, career, achievements and timeline in this biography.
John Denver
John Denver, a famous American singer-songwriter and activist, is remembered for songs like Take Me Home, Country Roads and Annie's Song. To know more about his childhood, career, profile and timeline read on
Childhood & Early Life
Alun Hoddinott was born on 11th August 1929 in Glamorganshire County, Wales. His father was a teacher who worked in the town of Bargoed, located in the same county. When his father got offered a job in Pont-Iliw, the family moved there when Alun was still an infant.
The young lad developed a keen interest towards music since his childhood days. He even started learning to play the violin at the tender age of four. He started composing while pursuing his education at the ‘Gowerton Grammar School’.
After winning a scholarship, the youngster earned his ‘Bachelors in Arts’ degree from ‘University College’ located in Cardiff, in 1949. He then continued learning the nuances of music composition in London from Arthur Benjamin, the Australian composer.
Career
Alun embarked on his musical career as a child, and in 1946 he co-founded the ‘National Youth Orchestra of Wales’, when he was only a teenager. While he was a student at ‘University College, Cardiff’, he composed a wide range of pieces, including symphonies for orchestra and cello concerts, quartets and songs for choirs.
Hoddinott began his teaching career as a lecturer in the ‘Cardiff College of Music and Drama’ in 1954.
In the 1954 ‘Cheltenham Festival’, Alun’s musical composition ‘Clarinet Concerto’ was first premiered. It was performed by musician Gervase de Peyer and the musical symphony ‘Halle Orchestra’ was conducted by Sir John Barbirolli. The premiere was a huge success and brought instant glory to Hoddinott.
After an eight-year-long association with the music department of ‘Cardiff College of Music and Drama’, this composer joined his alma mater ‘The University College of South Wales and Monmouthshire’ as a lecturer in 1959.
He was designated as a reader of the ‘University of Wales’ in 1965, a post he held for the next two years. Even during this time Alun composed music for various festivals. He composed the musical ‘The cantata Dives and Lazarus’ for the ‘Farnham Schools Festival’, in the same year.
The ‘Royal Philharmonic Society’ staged the performance of his opera ‘Variants of Orchestra’ in 1966. The music troupe ‘New Philharmonic Orchestra’ performed his opera ‘Night Music’ the following year. Both these works marked a noted evolution from Hoddinott’s characteristic dark and broody rhythms.
He then became a professor of music at the ‘Cardiff University’ in 1967. Later he was promoted to the designation of ‘Head of The Department’ at the same institution. During his tenure as the head of the music department, Hoddinott pioneered the ‘Cardiff Festival of Twentieth Century Music’.
Alun made a remarkable contribution to the musical precinct of Wales. His international repute, as well as involvement towards the festival, helped the event evolve into a magnanimous one, as leading musicians of the era were the benefactors. Hoddinott, himself was an inspiration to the young minds and his contemporaries alike.
This famous music composer also played a vital role in expanding the music department of the ‘University of Cardiff’. He also paved way for a massive building for the same reason, which became the largest of its kind during the 1980s
He was also the mentor of many composers of Irish and Welsh origins. John Buckley, Karl Jenkins, Jeffrey Lewis, John Metcalf and Christopher Painter are a few such prominent people who got their skills polished by Hoddinott.
In 1973, the ‘Welsh National Opera’, held the first performance of Hoddinott’s maiden opera ‘The Beach of Falesa’. The founder of ‘WNO’ and the opera giant ‘Geraint Evans’, enacted in the lead role in this opera.
Alun partook from all the administrative duties of the music department as well as ‘Cardiff Festival’ in 1989. However, he continued to compose music and his composition ‘NoctisEqui’, often considered his finest, was premiered in UK at the ‘Barbican Theatre’ in the same year.
Alun continued to work even till his final days. Days before he fell ill, he completed ‘Taliesin’ a symphonic poem. The luminary artist, Wigmore Hall, hosted the gala opening of his last music ensemble ‘Music for String Quartet’.
Major Works
Hoddinott's opera ‘The Sun, the Great Luminary of the Universe’, which he composed in 1970 for the ‘Swansea Music Festival’, is considered one of his greatest works. The ‘London Symphony Orchestra’ presented the composition orchestrated by Vernon Handley, a famous British conductor.
Awards & Achievements
He was conferred with the ‘Arnold Bax Medal’ in 1957, which was only the beginning of the various laurels he received during the course of his career.
He received the honorary title of the ‘Most Excellent Commander of the British Empire’ in 1983.
At the ‘Machynlleth Festival’, Alun was presented the ‘Glyndwr Award’ for his ‘Outstanding Contribution to the Arts in Wales’, in 1997.
The ‘Arts Council of Wales’ felicitated this conductor with a ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ in 1999.
At the premiere night of the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’, he was presented a medal by Queen Elizabeth II in 2004.
The ‘BBC Welsh National Orchestra’ honoured Hoddinott by naming their new music hall after him. In 2008, this music hall, named ‘Millennium Centre Neuadd Hoddinott’ (Hoddinott Hall) was opened for public.
Personal Life & Legacy
Alun was married to Rhiannon, who collaborated with him on many projects and also acted as his translator and amanuensis.
Alun died at the age of 78, in Wales, a day after the world premiere of his ensemble ‘Music for Star Quartet’
// Famous Musicians
Ted Nugent
Ted Nugent is a hard rock musician known for his hits ‘Stranglehold’ and ‘Cat Scratch Fever’. This biography of Ted Nugent provides detailed information about his childhood, life, achievements, works & timeline.
Muddy Waters
Muddy Waters was a blues musician referred to as the 'father of modern Chicago blues.' Check out this biography to know about his childhood, family life, achievements and fun facts about him.
Travis Bacon
Travis Bacon is an American musician and actor, better known as the son of veteran actors Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick. Find more about his family, birthday, etc.
Alun Hoddinott biography timelines
- // 11th Aug 1929Alun Hoddinott was born on 11th August 1929 in Glamorganshire County, Wales. His father was a teacher who worked in the town of Bargoed, located in the same county. When his father got offered a job in Pont-Iliw, the family moved there when Alun was still an infant.
- // 1946Alun embarked on his musical career as a child, and in 1946 he co-founded the ‘National Youth Orchestra of Wales’, when he was only a teenager. While he was a student at ‘University College, Cardiff’, he composed a wide range of pieces, including symphonies for orchestra and cello concerts, quartets and songs for choirs.
- // 1949After winning a scholarship, the youngster earned his ‘Bachelors in Arts’ degree from ‘University College’ located in Cardiff, in 1949. He then continued learning the nuances of music composition in London from Arthur Benjamin, the Australian composer.
- // 1954Hoddinott began his teaching career as a lecturer in the ‘Cardiff College of Music and Drama’ in 1954.
- // 1954In the 1954 ‘Cheltenham Festival’, Alun’s musical composition ‘Clarinet Concerto’ was first premiered. It was performed by musician Gervase de Peyer and the musical symphony ‘Halle Orchestra’ was conducted by Sir John Barbirolli. The premiere was a huge success and brought instant glory to Hoddinott.
- // 1957He was conferred with the ‘Arnold Bax Medal’ in 1957, which was only the beginning of the various laurels he received during the course of his career.
- // 1959After an eight-year-long association with the music department of ‘Cardiff College of Music and Drama’, this composer joined his alma mater ‘The University College of South Wales and Monmouthshire’ as a lecturer in 1959.
- // 1965He was designated as a reader of the ‘University of Wales’ in 1965, a post he held for the next two years. Even during this time Alun composed music for various festivals. He composed the musical ‘The cantata Dives and Lazarus’ for the ‘Farnham Schools Festival’, in the same year.
- // 1966The ‘Royal Philharmonic Society’ staged the performance of his opera ‘Variants of Orchestra’ in 1966. The music troupe ‘New Philharmonic Orchestra’ performed his opera ‘Night Music’ the following year. Both these works marked a noted evolution from Hoddinott’s characteristic dark and broody rhythms.
- // 1967He then became a professor of music at the ‘Cardiff University’ in 1967. Later he was promoted to the designation of ‘Head of The Department’ at the same institution. During his tenure as the head of the music department, Hoddinott pioneered the ‘Cardiff Festival of Twentieth Century Music’.
- // 1970Hoddinott's opera ‘The Sun, the Great Luminary of the Universe’, which he composed in 1970 for the ‘Swansea Music Festival’, is considered one of his greatest works. The ‘London Symphony Orchestra’ presented the composition orchestrated by Vernon Handley, a famous British conductor.
- // 1973In 1973, the ‘Welsh National Opera’, held the first performance of Hoddinott’s maiden opera ‘The Beach of Falesa’. The founder of ‘WNO’ and the opera giant ‘Geraint Evans’, enacted in the lead role in this opera.
- // 1983He received the honorary title of the ‘Most Excellent Commander of the British Empire’ in 1983.
- // 1989Alun partook from all the administrative duties of the music department as well as ‘Cardiff Festival’ in 1989. However, he continued to compose music and his composition ‘NoctisEqui’, often considered his finest, was premiered in UK at the ‘Barbican Theatre’ in the same year.
- // 1997At the ‘Machynlleth Festival’, Alun was presented the ‘Glyndwr Award’ for his ‘Outstanding Contribution to the Arts in Wales’, in 1997.
- // 1999The ‘Arts Council of Wales’ felicitated this conductor with a ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ in 1999.
- // 2004At the premiere night of the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’, he was presented a medal by Queen Elizabeth II in 2004.
- // 2008The ‘BBC Welsh National Orchestra’ honoured Hoddinott by naming their new music hall after him. In 2008, this music hall, named ‘Millennium Centre Neuadd Hoddinott’ (Hoddinott Hall) was opened for public.
// Famous Leo Celebrities peoples
Eugenia Cooney
Check out all that you wanted to know about Eugenia Cooney, the famous American Vlogger & YouTube Personality; her birthday, her family and personal life, her boyfriends, fun trivia facts and more.
Princess D
Princess D (Destiny Indira Cox) is an American rapper, dancer and social media personality. Let’s have a look at her family and personal life including age, birthday, net worth, and fun facts.
Payton Moormeier
Payton Moormeier is an American social-media personality best known for his musical.ly videos. Check out this family, personal life, etc.
Grian
Grian is an English YouTube gamer and social media influencer. Check out this biography to know about his birthday, childhood, family life, achievements and fun facts about him.
Emmi Butler
Emmi Butler is an American YouTuber and social media star. Let’s take a look at her family and personal life including age, date of birth, net worth, and fun facts.
Erica Delsman
Erica Delsman is an American Musical.ly Star and social media personality. Let’s take a look at her family & personal life including age, date of birth, net worth, and fun facts.
Alun Hoddinott's FAQ
What is Alun Hoddinott birthday?
Alun Hoddinott was born at 1929-08-11
When was Alun Hoddinott died?
Alun Hoddinott was died at 2008-03-12
Which age was Alun Hoddinott died?
Alun Hoddinott was died at age 78
Where is Alun Hoddinott's birth place?
Alun Hoddinott was born in Glamorgan
What is Alun Hoddinott nationalities?
Alun Hoddinott's nationalities is Welsh
What was Alun Hoddinott universities?
Alun Hoddinott studied at Cardiff University
What is Alun Hoddinott's sun sign?
Alun Hoddinott is Leo
How famous is Alun Hoddinott?
Alun Hoddinott is famouse as Composer