David Stoll

Composer

“Contemporary yet accessible,
witty and imaginative”

photograph by LVdigital

DAVID STOLL was educated at Oxford University, where he held the Hadow Scholarship in composition at Worcester College, and at the Royal Academy of Music, London. His work includes music for the concert hall, the theatre and the media. He is also active as a Consultant on Music and Creativity in schools, and regularly runs workshops and projects for pupils as well as training sessions for teachers. He lectures and writes on various aspects of music.

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CONCERT MUSIC

David Stoll’s concert music – catalogued below – includes works for orchestra, choir and much chamber music. Recent premieres include the fourth STRING QUARTET and THE COLCHESTER SUITE.

Much of the concert music is available on CD, including THE SHAKESPEARE SUITE and the first two String Quartets. FOOLS BY HEAVENLY COMPULSION (the third String Quartet) has been recorded by the Bingham String Quartet for release in the near future.

He also writes for school ensembles, choral and instrumental, most recently the GALLIONS CONCERTO for clarinet and string orchestra, commissioned by Gallions School for first performance in 2007.

Several scores are available for viewing at the British Music Information Centre, or you can contact David Stoll directly via the link at the end of this site.

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THEATRE MUSIC

David Stoll was one of the composers commissioned to write for the 'UK Year of Opera and Musical Theatre, 1997'. His contribution was the one-act opera about the Tudor composer, William Byrd - FALSE RELATIONS. This was his second opera, the first – ACCORDING TO VASHTI – being written for performance by schools .

He co-wrote the music for TELLER OF TALES, the musical about Robert Louis Stevenson, which has played in Edinburgh and California. He wrote several smaller-scale musicals for the Bowsprit Company in Greenwich and other companies, and has advised on songs for West End shows.

Notable theatre music includes the A&BC Theatre Company's highly acclaimed IF I WERE LIFTED UP FROM EARTH and the score for the Royal Shakespeare Company’s 2003 production of AS YOU LIKE IT. Most recently he wrote the music for the 2006 production of HENRY VIII at Stratford-upon-Avon in the RSC’s year-long celebration of the complete works.

David Stoll has also worked with Youth Theatres in London and elsewhere. His most recent Youth Theatre musical, GULLIVER, commissioned with Arts Council funding, was very successfully premiered by the Masque Youth Theatre in Northampton in the summer of 2007 and is currently being revised for professional production.

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MEDIA MUSIC

David Stoll's music for television and radio is familiar around the world. He has written and recorded much production music – orchestral, chamber and electronic – which is regularly used in television programmes internationally. He has also written very many songs (as well as lyrics, stories and poems) for children and his signature tunes introduce several popular language teaching courses.

Media commissions come in a wide variety of areas. Recently he has written and produced the music for a television documentary about Whittle and the development of the jet engine, for an inter-active computer programme for educationalists, and several new arrangements of National Anthems for a library publisher.

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EDUCATION WORK

David Stoll acts as a consultant in music and creativity in education and regularly runs composing projects in primary schools. He delivers INSET training for teachers on behalf of several Local Education Authorities. He also lectures and gives master classes at Universities and Conservatoires. Recently he has begun to provide workshops based on listening and creativity in a wider context, including for the Department of Health and the Talent Foundation.

He has written two books on teaching composing:

BUILDING MUSIC - Teaching Composing at Key Stage 2 (DfES, 2005) KEY STAGE 2 COMPOSING – the complete scheme of work (First and Best in Education, 2006)

For further information about David Stoll's educational work, please visit www.creative-confidence.com

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COMMITTEES

David Stoll is a former Chairman of the British Academy of Composers and Songwriters. He sits on the Board and the Concert Executive Committee of The Academy, and is also a Board Director of British Music Rights. A former Trustee of the British Music Information Centre and the first elected composer representative on the Appeals Panel of the Performing Right Society, he has led two Government funded projects:

IN TUNE IN EUROPE, a Seminar for European Composers and Songwriters, co-sponsored by the UK Government (DCMS) and the European Commission

BUILDING MUSIC, a research project for the DfES investigating visiting composers working in primary schools

David Stoll writes articles on music and creative matters for several journals. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, in February 2002 he was elected an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music for “distinction in his profession”.

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DISCOGRAPHY - buy CDs here
	Meridian Piano Quartet Piano Sonata Sonata for Two Pianos String Trio The Pro Arte Trio with David Ward and Noel Skinner
Shakespeare Suite - Sonia Slany and Jacqueline Norrie (violin), Sophie Renshaw (viola), Nick Cooper (cello) - with Shelagh Sutherland (piano), Anna Noakes (flute) , Melinda Maxwell (oboe), Martin Robertson (clarinet), John Orford (bassoon) and Pip Eastop (horn). “Contemporary yet accessible, witty and imaginative” – HMV Choice; “an attractive palette of tonal colour, mood and thematic treatment” – The Hampstead and Highgate Express; “committed playing and a sincere and attractive vision” – amazon.co.uk.
	Quartets - String Quartets nos.1and 2 played by Solid Strings
Sad Steps - Virelai's CD features three works by David Stoll, including "The Fair Singer"
FOOLS BY HEAVENLY COMPULSION (String Quartet no 3) has been recorded by the Bingham String Quartet for release in the near future.
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MAJOR CONCERT WORKS

work: Piano Quartet
date: 1987
first performance: Holland, January 1990

work: According to Vashti
date: 1987
first performance: England, March 1988

work: Sonata for Two Pianos
date: 1990
first performance: Holland, February 1991

work: Piano Sonata
date: 1991
first performance: Holland, May 1992, New York, May 1993

work: String Trio
date: 1992
first performance: Art in Action festival, 1992

work: Fanfares and Reflections
date: 1992
forces: wind sextet
first performance: St John's Smith Square, March 1993

work: Who is Sylvia?
date: 1994
forces: piano duet
first performance: Concertgebouw, December 1994

work: String Quartet
date: 1994
performance: Toronto, June 1998

work: All the World's a Stage
date: 1994
forces: upper-voice choir
first performance: Manchester, May 1995

work: Monument
date: 1995
forces: harmony band
first performance: Holland, May 1995

work: The Bowl of Nous - Cantata
date: 1996
forces: Mezzo-Soprano, Baritone, 3 trebles, SATB and orchestra
first performance: London, May 1997, Toronto June 1998

work: Who, if not I?
date: 1996
forces: voices and chamber orchestra
first performance: Sydney, May 1998

work: False Relations
date: 1997
forces: opera in one act
libretto: Andrew Gallacher
first performance: Lincolnshire, March 1997

work: The Shakespeare Suite
date: 1997
forces: chamber ensemble
first performance: On CD

work: Motet in Memoriam
date: 1998
forces: large choir
first performance: New York, September 2000

work: Midwinter Spring
date: 1998
forces: orchestra
first performance: St James's, Piccadilly, February 1999

work: String Quartet # 2
date: 1999
first performance: On CD

work: The Prayer of Hermes
date: 2000
first performance: London, June 2000

work: Cello Concerto
date: 2000
first performance: London, May 2001

work: Octave Variations
date: 2001
forces: tuba quartet
first performance: Art in Action Festival, Waterperry, Oxford, July 2001

work: The Path to the River
date: 2001
first performance: Chroma, St Cyprian's London, August 2003
forces: octet, mixed ensemble

work: Cello Sonata
date: 2001
first performance: Richard Jenkinson and Samantha Newbold, St Martin in the Fields, London, 5th April 2002

work: Fools by Heavenly Compulsion (String Quartet #3)
date: 2002
first performance: Bingham String Quartet, St Giles Cripplegate,
25th April 2002

work: Sonnet
date: summer 2002
first performance: Stratford-upon-Avon, April 2003
forces: string orchestra

work: Pot-Pourri
date: autumn 2002
first performance: London, January 2003
forces: orchestra

work: Blow Brass
date: 2003
first performances: Washington, April 2003; Stratford-upon-Avon, April 2003

work: Theatre Dreams
date: 2003
forces: Brass Quintet

work: A Colchester Suite
date: 2003
forces: Pipes
first performance: Colchester, August 2006

work: String Quartet No. 4
date: 2005
first performance: London, July 2005 by the Bingham String Quartet as part of the Leytonstone Festival

work: Gallions Concerto
date: 2006
forces: clarinet with school string orchestra and piano

also works for piano, piano duet, school ensembles, choirs and songs.

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OTHER INTERESTS

David Stoll has a keen interest in philosophy, which is often reflected in his music. He also very much enjoys reading and walking.

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David Stoll is a Member of the Performers and
Composers Section of the ISM