MARTIN DALBY COMPOSER martindalby@btinternet.com

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BIOGRAPHY  MARTIN DALBY was born in Aberdeen in 1942. He was educated at Aberdeen Grammar School and in 1960 won a Foundation Scholarship to the Royal College of Music in London where he studied composition with Herbert Howells and viola with Frederick Riddle. In 1963 the Octavia Prize and a Sir James Caird Travelling Scholarship enabled him to spend two years in Italy where besides composing he played the viola with a small Italian Chamber Orchestra. With this orchestra he toured widely in Europe and North Africa . In 1965 he was appointed as a music producer to the BBC’s newly formed Music Programme (later to be Radio 3.) In 1971 he became the Cramb Research Fellow in Composition at the University of Glasgow and in 1972 returned to the BBC as Head of Music, Scotland where he began the development of the public profile of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, both in Great Britain and abroad, which increases as time goes on. In 1991 he relinquished this post in order to pursue a more creative role in BBC Scotland. A result of this was the production, amongst other things, of BBC Scotland’s massive radio history, Scotland ’s Music. He won a Sony Gold Award for it. In 1993 Dalby retired from the BBC and now composes full time. He has written a large amount of music: for orchestra, for chorus, for brass and wind bands, for the Church, for film, radio and television, many songs and song cycles, and chamber music ranging from duos and trios to octets and nonets.  Most of it has been commissioned: from festivals such as Edinburgh , Cheltenham, Cardiff , Orkney and Peterborough , or from orchestras and ensembles. It has been performed widely throughout the world notably at such festivals as the Warsaw Autumn and the Henry Wood Proms in London for which in 1991 he wrote The Mary Bean for the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. This was his fourth performance at the Proms. Work for his home city occupied him after that. First, The White Maa for the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, music to celebrate 200 years of Union Street in Aberdeen and more recently a String Quartet to celebrate 500 years of Aberdeen University. In 1998 he composed his third Piano Sonata for Peter Seivewright and a year later, a short piece for the National Youth String Orchestra of Scotland, The First Thursday in May, welcoming the return of a Government in Scotland . At this time he was reliving his fascination with the music of the great Scots fiddler and composer, J. Scott Skinner, creating his own five movement orchestral suite A Wheen in Doric from it. The act of “rebuilding” Skinner’s tender and characteristically Scottish music is born of devotion not of destruction. More recently his attention has turned to writing vocal music both for children and adults. He is completing a set of songs for voice and piano in memory of one of his Labradors , A Little Songbook for Tessa. Sunbeam for Sheba (2002) is likewise a song in memory of a labrador — Tessa’s mother. He is also completing a substantial work for eight double basses and is beginning to write  Lang Johnnie More: an essay with trumpet mutes. Dalby has a profound interest in Scotland : he and John Purser made a massive series for BBC Radio Scotland called Scotland ’s Music. They won a Sony Award for it. He, with his colleagues, won a Gramophone award for their production of the CD of James MacMillan’s The Confession of Isobel Gowdie. His composing peers awarded him a “Gold Badge” in 1999 which he accepted with a speech about sheep. He is a hill walker; he is interested in railways and literature; he is a bird watcher and he also holds a Private Pilot’s Licence. Dalby has always concerned himself with the interests of his fellow composers. He helped in forming and running several chamber groups in Scotland . He was Chairman of the Composers’ Guild of Great Britain from 1995 to 1998 and was a founding director of both the British Academy of Composers and Songwriters and British Music Rights. His membership of the BAC&S Concert Executive Committee continued from its start until 2009. He was also Warden of the Incorporated Society of Musicians’ Performers and Composers Section in 2001 and 2002. He retains his interest in the ISM as Convener of its South-West Scotland Centre.

CONTACT ADDRESSES

Alfred Lengnick & Co taken over by BMG Publishing Ltd  distributed by FM Distribution Ltd Burnt Mill Elizabeth Way Harlow , CM20 2HX  Tel:  01279 828 989 Fax: 01279 828 990 e-mail: sale@fmdistribution.com

Boosey & Hawkes Music Publishers Ltd 295 Regent Street London , W1B 2JH Tel:  020 7580 2060 Fax: 020 7291 7109 (promotion) Fax: 020 7291 7199 (sales) e-mail: marketing.uk@boosey.com

Bridge 2004 Bridge Records, Inc. 200 Clinton Avenue New Rochelle NY - 10801, USA e-mail: bridgerec@bridgerecords.com www.BridgeRecords.com

British Music Information Centre Sound & Music Lincoln House 75 Westminster Bridge London SE1 7HS Tel:  020 7928 1902 Fax: 020 7928 2957 e-mail: info@bmic.co.uk

Chester Music Ltd: see Music Sales Ltd

Martin Dalby 23 Muirpark Way Drymen, G63 ODX. Tel: 01360 660427 Fax: 01360 660397 e-mail:  martin.dalby@drymen.net

Faber Music Ltd, 3 Queen Square, London, WC1N 3AU. Tel: 0171 278 7436 0171 833 7906 (sales) Fax: 0171 833 7939 e-mail: info@fabermusic.co.uk distributed by FM Distribution Ltd Burnt Mill Elizabeth Way Harlow , CM20 2HX   Tel:  01279 828 989 Fax: 01279 828 990 e-mail: sale@fmdistribution.com

Gonzaga Music 43 Victor Road London NW10 5XB Tel & Fax: 020 8964 3384 e-mail: info@gonzagamusic.co.uk www.gonzagamusic.co.uk

Music Sales Ltd 14-15 Berners Street London , W1 3LJ   Tel:  0207 612 7400 Fax: 0207 612 7545 e-mail: music@musicsales.co.uk e-mail (Novello): vicky.small@musicsales.co.uk e-mail (Chester): sam.wilcock@musicsales.co.uk  Hire Library Newmarket Road Bury St Edmunds Suffolk , 1P33 3YB   Tel: 01284 705705 Fax: 01284 703741 e-mail: hire@musicsales.co.uk

National Youth Choir of Scotland The Mitchell Library North Street Glasgow G3 7DN  Tel:  0141 287 2856 Fax: 0141 287 2858 e-mail: admin@nycos.co.uk www.nycos.co.uk

Novello & Co Ltd: see Music Sales Ltd

Oxford University Press Music Department Great Clarenden Street Oxford , 0X2 6DP   Tel:  01865 353349 Fax: 01865 353749 e-mail: music.enquiry.uk@oup.com Oxford University Press, New Music Promotion 70 Baker Street London , W1U 7DN  Tel:  020 7616 5900 Fax: 020 7616 5901 e-mail: repertoire.promotion.uk@oup.com

Scottish Music Centre City Halls Candleriggs Glasgow , G1 1NQ  Tel:  0141 552 5222 Fax: 0141 553 2789 e-mail: info@scottishmusic.com www.scottishmusiccentre

Warwick Music Limited 1 Broomfield Road Coventry W. Midlands CV5 6JW.  Tel:  0808 092 7942 (sales) Tel:  024 7671 2081 (admin) Fax: 024 2046 2733 e-mail: sales@warwickmusic.com

Yorke Edition Grove Cottage Southgate South Creake   Norfolk NR21 9PA Tel: 01328 823501 Fax: 01328 823502 e-mail: enquiries@yorkedition.co.uk www.yorkedition.co.uk

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Martin Dalby is a Member of the Incorporated Society of Musicians