Arthur Eckersley Butterworth, MBE (4 August 1923 – 20 November 2014) was an English composer, conductor, trumpeter and teacher.[1]
Biography
Early life and education
Butterworth was born in
New Moston, near
Manchester. His father ran the church choir, in which his mother played the piano and Butterworth himself sang. For the entrance fee of sixpence, Butterworth attended Hallé concerts. He also volunteered for the village brass band who allocated him the
trombone. As a teenager he played with the
Besses o' th' Barn Band and started taking conducting lessons.[2] While playing with the band, he caught his trombone in
tram tracks and, discouraged by the accident, changed to the
trumpet.[3]
His music teacher at North Manchester Grammar School, Percy Penrose, gave him much encouragement but his parents and headmaster tried to dissuade him from a full-time career. Five years in the wartime
Army gave him little scope for music-making but Butterworth more than made up for it afterwards. In 1939, however, he won the Alexander Owen Scholarship for young brass players and had his first work played in public by the
Wingates Band conducted by
Granville Bantock. At the time, Butterworth was unaware of Bantock's fame, or that he was a friend of
Jean Sibelius whom he revered, but Bantock was nevertheless encouraging. At the Royal Manchester College of Music (now the
Royal Northern College of Music), Butterworth studied composition with
Richard Hall and also learned the trumpet and conducting. He studied composition with
Ralph Vaughan Williams after writing to the composer in 1950, requesting lessons.[2] He served as a trumpeter in the Scottish National Orchestra (now the
Royal Scottish National Orchestra) from 1949–55 and in the
Hallé from 1955–62;[4] he also played as a freelance until 1963. In that year he began to teach at the Huddersfield School of Music, an activity which he combined with composing and conducting (he was for many years principal conductor of the
Huddersfield Philharmonic Orchestra). He was made an MBE in 1995. He was unrelated to the composer
George Butterworth (1885–1916).
Works
His works include seven symphonies, eight concertos, several other large orchestral scores, and a considerable amount of music for brass band. In the summer of 2008 Butterworth returned to the Royal Scottish National Orchestra to conduct a recording of his Fourth Symphony (1986) and his Viola Concerto (1988) with the English viola player, Sarah-Jane Bradley. The Sixth Symphony had its première in
Saint Petersburg by
St Petersburg State Capella Orchestra on 15 November 2009.[1]
A selection of Arthur Butterworth's orchestral and chamber works have been released on the
Dutton Epoch Label. The Viola Concerto and the Fourth and Fifth Symphonies are all performed by the
Royal Scottish National Orchestra under the composer's baton. One of the releases also includes
Barbirolli's 1958 mono recording of Butterworth's First Symphony, along with a series of reminiscences by the composer. A CD of Piano Trios is also available.
Personal life
He was married to Diana Butterworth, until her death in February 2013. He died on 20 November 2014 at
Embsay,
Craven,
North Yorkshire and is survived by his daughters Nicola and Carolin.[5]
Three Night Pieces for trumpet and piano, Op. 81 (1987)
Partita for euphonium and piano, Op. 89 (1991)
Quartet for brass instruments, Op. 91 (1992)
Piano Quintet, Symphonic Variations for piano and string quartet, Op. 95 (1995, revised 1998)
Wedding Music for trumpet and organ, Op. 99 (1996)
String Quartet, Op. 100 (1997, revised 2011)
Morris Dancers for 4 horns, Op. 101 (1997)
Actaeon's Ride for woodwind and brass ensemble, Op. 102 (1997, revised 1998); commissioned for, and premiered by the Mayfield Wind Sinfonia, Sheffield.
Bubu for English horn, viola and harp, Op. 107 (1999)
Pastorale for viola and piano, Op. 112 (2002)
The Sands of Dee for double bass and piano, Op. 117
Three Lyric Pieces for tuba (or cello, or double bass) and piano, Op. 119 (2003)