Richard Rodney Bennett

Biography

Born: March 29, 1936; Broadstairs, Kent, England   Died: December 24, 2012; New York, NY  
A remarkably prolific composer and versatile pianist, Richard Rodney Bennett divided his attention among three primary musical interests: film music in an often Romantic style, concert music owing much to serialism, and jazz and cabaret music. Bennett began following all of these avenues by the 1950s, but he never allowed the paths to intersect. Each pursuit maintained its own integrity and in no way could he be considered a crossover artist. He Read more was writing music even as he was learning to read, and produced three string quartets by the time he was 18. Bennett enrolled in the Royal Academy of Music in 1953, studying composition with Howard Ferguson and Lennox Berkeley. He graduated in 1956, then spent 1957 - 1959 as a scholarship student in Paris with Pierre Boulez. Here, Bennett was thoroughly indoctrinated in Boulez's technique of total serialism and the German avant-garde, but his only surviving work from this period is Cycle II for Paul Jacobs. Bennett almost immediately took a highly personal approach to serialism, focusing on the melodic possibilities of a tone row and readily exploring its harmonic potential. A turning point came in 1981 with his ballet Noctuary, which fused the tonality of the Scott Joplin piece on which it was based with Bennett's usual atonal serialism. After this, Bennett's techniques became much freer; while still atonal, his highly expressive music shook off the strictest controls of serialism and often indulged in quotation of earlier composers. Bennett's catalog includes four string quartets, three symphonies, concertos for almost all the principal instruments (including harpsichord), and a great deal of chamber music. He frequently wrote for woodwinds throughout his career, but began to focus more intently on them in the late '80s upon befriending many wind players in his capacity as a piano accompanist. Since 1956, Bennett had also been writing film scores in a much more conservative style. He became a favorite composer of Joseph Losey, among other directors, and among his some 50 cinematic efforts are scores for such popular movies as Far from the Madding Crowd, Nicholas and Alexandra, Murder on the Orient Express, and Four Weddings and a Funeral. It was also in the 1950s that Bennett became interested in jazz, particularly as a pianist. He kept this fascination largely to himself until the 1990s, when he began touring the world with a solo cabaret act, singing and playing jazz pieces and torch songs. Read less
Browse 1-25 of 79 Available Recordings
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  • 1.
    Bennett: Orchestral Works, Vol. 4 / Wilson, BBC Scottish Symphony
    Bennett: Orchestral Works, Vol. 4 / Wilson, BBC Scottish Symphony
    Label: Chandos   Catalog: 5244 Release Date: 05/01/2020   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Richard Rodney Bennett
    Performer:  Michael McHale
    Conductor:  John Wilson
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
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  • 2.
    Four / London Myriad
    Four / London Myriad
    Label: Metier   Catalog: 28587 Release Date: 10/18/2019   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Eugčne Bozza,  Frank Bridge,  Jean Françaix,  Richard Rodney Bennett  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  London Myriad
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  • 3.
    Notes from Home / Holden, Park
    Notes from Home / Holden, Park
    Label: Centaur Records   Catalog: 3664 Release Date: 06/07/2019   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  William Yeates Hurlstone,  Edwin Roxburgh,  Charles Villiers Stanford,  Gerald Finzi  ... 
    Performer:  Jonathan Holden,  Eun-Hee Park
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  • 4.
    Scenes from West Side Storry & Other Works for 2 Pianos / Nettle Markham
    Scenes from West Side Storry & Other Works for 2 Pianos / Nettle Markham
    Label: Guild Music   Catalog: 7811 Release Date: 08/17/2018   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Leonard Bernstein,  Richard Rodney Bennett,  Percy Aldridge Grainger
    Performer:  David Nettle,  Richard Markham
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  • 5.
    The Glory & The Dream: Choral Music by Richard Rodney Bennett / RBC Chamber Choir
    The Glory & The Dream: Choral Music by Richard Rodney Bennett / RBC Chamber Choir
    Label: Somm   Catalog: 184 Release Date: 07/20/2018   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Richard Rodney Bennett
    Conductor:  Paul Spicer
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Birmingham Conservatoire Chamber Choir
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  • 6.
    Bennett: Orchestral Works, Vol. 2 / Wilson, McGill, BBC Scottish Symphony
    Bennett: Orchestral Works, Vol. 2 / Wilson, McGill, BBC Scottish Symphony
    Label: Chandos   Catalog: 5212 Release Date: 07/06/2018   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Richard Rodney Bennett
    Performer:  Howard McGill,  Gordon Rigby,  Scott Dickinson
    Conductor:  John Wilson
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
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  • 7.
    The King's Singers: The Complete RCA Recordings
    The King's Singers: The Complete RCA Recordings
    Label: Sony   Catalog: 88985470182 Release Date: 03/02/2018   Number of Discs: 11
    Composer:  Brian Wilson,  Paul Simon,  Phil Collins,  Randy Newman  ... 
    Performer:  Ray Snurck,  Mamadi Kamara,  Chris Laurence,  Roger Vignoles  ... 
    Conductor:  Benjamin Baldwin
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  The King's Singers,  Michael Thompson Horn Quartet,  Santa Barbara Festival Orchestra
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  • 8.
    Intersections: Character Pieces in the Jazz Idiom / Sokasits
    Intersections: Character Pieces in the Jazz Idiom / Sokasits
    Label: Albany Records   Catalog: 1684 Release Date: 12/08/2017   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Aaron Copland,  Samuel Barber,  Dana Wilson,  Christian Berg  ... 
    Performer:  Jonathan Sokasits
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  • 9.
    Bennett: Orchestral Works / Wilson, BBC Scottish Symphony
    Bennett: Orchestral Works / Wilson, BBC Scottish Symphony
    Label: Chandos   Catalog: 5202 Release Date: 11/03/2017   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Richard Rodney Bennett
    Performer:  Colin Currie
    Conductor:  John Wilson
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
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  • 10.
    Gold / The King's Singers
    Gold / The King's Singers
    Label: Signum Classics   Catalog: 500 Release Date: 11/03/2017   Number of Discs: 3
    Composer:  Robert Chilcott,  John Lennon,  Frances,  Kidjo Angelique  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  The King's Singers
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  • 11.
    Reynish International Repertoire Recordings, Vol. 8: Morning Music - Night Music
    Reynish International Repertoire Recordings, Vol. 8: Morning Music - Night Music
    Label: Mark Records   Catalog: 52578 Release Date: 08/18/2017   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Richard Rodney Bennett,  Irwin Bazelon
    Performer:  Martin Winter
    Conductor:  Timothy Reynish
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Royal Northern College of Music Wind Orchestra
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  • 12.
    Richard Stoltzman: The Complete RCA Album Collection
    Richard Stoltzman: The Complete RCA Album Collection
    Label: Sony   Catalog: 88985389642 Release Date: 05/05/2017   Number of Discs: 40
    Composer:  Olivier Messiaen,  Johannes Brahms,  Igor Stravinsky,  Ludwig van Beethoven  ... 
    Performer:  Richard Stoltzman,  Jeremy Wall,  Bill Douglas,  Eddie Gomez  ... 
    Conductor:  Richard Stoltzman,  Lawrence Leighton Smith,  Robert Salter
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Woody Herman & His Orchestra,  London Symphony Orchestra,  Tashi  ... 
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  • 13.
    Love Story: Piano Themes from Cinema's Golden Age / Lisitsa
    Love Story: Piano Themes from Cinema's Golden Age / Lisitsa
    Label: Decca   Catalog: 002500302 Release Date: 09/09/2016   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Richard Addinsell,  Hubert Bath,  Jack Beaver,  Richard Rodney Bennett  ... 
    Performer:  Valentina Lisitsa
    Conductor:  Gavin Sutherland,  Christopher Warren-Green
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  BBC Concert Orchestra
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  • 14.
    Stephen Kovacevich: The Complete Philips Recordings
    Stephen Kovacevich: The Complete Philips Recordings
    Label: Decca   Catalog: 002369302 Release Date: 09/11/2015   Number of Discs: 25
    Composer:  Ludwig van Beethoven,  Béla Bartók,  Igor Stravinsky,  Johannes Brahms  ... 
    Performer:  Stephen Kovacevich,  Jack Brymer,  Patrick Ireland,  Martha Argerich  ... 
    Conductor:  Sir Colin Davis,  Sir Alexander Gibson,  John Lanchbery
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  BBC Symphony Orchestra,  London Symphony Orchestra,  Berlin Philharmonic Octet members  ... 
    CD: $98.99
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  • 15.
    Nocturnal / Stefano Grondona
    Nocturnal / Stefano Grondona
    Label: Stradivarius   Catalog: 33954 Release Date: 10/08/2013   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Benjamin Britten,  Sir William Walton,  Richard Rodney Bennett,  Toru Takemitsu
    Performer:  Stefano Grondona
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  • 16.
    Times Go By Turns / New York Polyphony
    Times Go By Turns / New York Polyphony
    Label: Bis   Catalog: 2037 Release Date: 08/27/2013   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  William Byrd,  John Plummer,  Thomas Tallis,  Richard Rodney Bennett  ... 
    Performer:  Geoffrey Dunstan Williams,  Steven Caldicott Wilson,  Christopher Dylan Herbert,  Craig Phillips
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  New York Polyphony
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  • 17.
    Apparitions / Richardson, University Of Western Ontario Wind Ensemble
    Apparitions / Richardson, University Of Western Ontario Wind Ensemble
    Label: Albany Records   Catalog: 1336 Release Date: 06/11/2013   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Jim Territo,  Jason Noble,  Richard Rodney Bennett,  Yo Goto  ... 
    Performer:  Shawn Spicer
    Conductor:  Colleen Richardson
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  University Of Western Ontario Wind Ensemble
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  • 18.
    Richard Rodney Bennett: Letters To Lindbergh / Bell, Moore, West
    Richard Rodney Bennett: Letters To Lindbergh / Bell, Moore, West
    Label: Signum Classics   Catalog: 325 Release Date: 03/26/2013   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Richard Rodney Bennett
    Performer:  Philip Moore,  Andrew West
    Conductor:  Christopher Bell
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  National Youth Choir of Scotland Girls Choir
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  • 19.
    Sea Change: The Choral Music of Richard Rodney Bennett
    Sea Change: The Choral Music of Richard Rodney Bennett
    Label: Collegium Records   Catalog: 521 Release Date: 03/26/2013   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Richard Rodney Bennett
    Performer:  Charles Fullbrook,  Sue Dorey
    Conductor:  John Rutter
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Cambridge Singers Choir
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  • 20.
    Insomnia - A Nocturnal Voyage In Song / William Berger, Iain Burnside
    Insomnia - A Nocturnal Voyage In Song / William Berger, Iain Burnside
    Label: Delphian   Catalog: 34116 Release Date: 11/13/2012   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart,  Claude Debussy,  Maurice Ravel,  Gabriel Fauré  ... 
    Performer:  William Berger,  Iain Burnside
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  • 21.
    My Dancing Day - Choral Music by Richard Rodney Bennett / Brough, BBC Singers
    My Dancing Day - Choral Music by Richard Rodney Bennett / Brough, BBC Singers
    Label: Signum Classics   Catalog: 293 Release Date: 08/28/2012   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Richard Rodney Bennett,  George Gershwin,  Edward "Duke" Ellington,  Cole Porter
    Performer:  Edward Goater,  Olivia Robinson
    Conductor:  Paul Brough
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  BBC Singers
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  • 22.
    This Is The Day / Rutter, Cambridge Singers
    This Is The Day / Rutter, Cambridge Singers
    Label: Collegium Records   Catalog: 136 Release Date: 04/24/2012   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  John Rutter,  Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart,  Sir William Walton,  Franz Schubert  ... 
    Performer:  Andrew Lucas,  Elin Manahan Thomas
    Conductor:  John Rutter
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Cambridge Singers,  Aurora Orchestra
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  • 23.
    Wolcum Yule / Andrew Lawrence-king, Anonymous 4
    Wolcum Yule / Andrew Lawrence-king, Anonymous 4
    Label: Harmonia Mundi   Catalog: 2927325 Release Date: 11/08/2011   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Anonymous,  Traditional,  Richard Rodney Bennett,  Peter Maxwell Davies  ... 
    Performer:  Jacqueline Horner,  Johanna Rose,  Susan Hellauer,  Marsha Genensky  ... 
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Anonymous 4
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  • 24.
    My True Love Hath My Heart / Connolly, Martineau
    My True Love Hath My Heart / Connolly, Martineau
    Label: Chandos   Catalog: 10691 Release Date: 10/25/2011   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  Benjamin Britten,  Herbert Howells,  John Ireland,  Ivor Gurney  ... 
    Performer:  Sarah Connolly,  Malcolm Martineau
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  • 25.
    On Christmas Night / Nethsingha, Choir of St. John's
    On Christmas Night / Nethsingha, Choir of St. John's
    Label: Chandos   Catalog: 5096 Release Date: 10/25/2011   Number of Discs: 1
    Composer:  John Rutter,  Traditional,  James Burton,  William Mathias  ... 
    Performer:  John Challenger,  Julius Foo,  Julian Gregory,  Freddie James  ... 
    Conductor:  Andrew Nethsingha
    Orchestra/Ensemble:  Cambridge St. John's College Choir
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