Barry Wordsworth
Barry Wordsworth’s successful career as a conductor is grounded in a strong relationship with ballet, coming to prominence as the music director of the Royal Ballet Covent Garden. In a conducting career spanning decades, Wordsworth has worked with major ballet companies and orchestras throughout the world.
Wordsworth was born February 2, 1948 in Surrey, England. His family wasn’t of a musical background, but realized early that he had a passion for it, and he began taking piano lessons. At age 13, he attended Trinity College of Music studying under Gladys Puttick. From there, Wordsworth went on to study with Sir Adrian Boult at the Royal College of Music. It was during this time Wordsworth would have his first opportunity to conduct. The head of music at his school became ill shortly before his all boys’ school and its neighboring all girls’ school were set to perform Handel’s Messiah. A prefect at the time, Wordsworth volunteered to conduct, and the performance went on as scheduled; a pivotal moment in his youth. He went on to continue studying piano and harpsichord with Gustav Leonhardt in Amsterdam.
His first involvement in a ballet production came at age 22, with the Royal Ballet Covent Garden. He played harpsichord in a production of Kenneth MacMillan's ballet Las Hermanas, set to Frank Martin's Harpsichord Concerto. Though this production was short lived, Wordsworth’s involvement with the Royal Ballet Covent Garden had just begun. In 1972, he was named assistant conductor to the ballet’s touring company, and in the following year, he was named principal conductor of the Sadler’s Wells Royal Ballet. The Sadler’s Wells Royal Ballet would later move to Birmingham, becoming the Birmingham Royal Ballet. He remained the ballet's conductor until 1984. He returned to the Royal Ballet Covent Garden as music director in 1990, serving until 1995. In 2005, Wordsworth rejoined the Birmingham Royal Ballet as music director, staying until 2008. In 2007, he returned once more as music director of the Royal Ballet Covent Garden, until 2015, when he was named principal guest conductor.
Accompanying his long, venerable career in ballet, Wordsworth has also been very successful in the orchestral world. In 1989, Wordsworth began two prominent roles: he was named principal conductor of both the BBC Concert Orchestra and the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra. During his tenure with the BBC Concert Orchestra, which ended in 2006, Wordsworth regularly led the group at the BBC Proms; this included the honor of leading the “Last Night of the Proms” in 1993. With the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra, Wordsworth was just the third person named principal conductor, remaining in this position until 2015. He has been named conductor laureate by both groups. Along with these orchestras, Wordsworth has conducted several major English orchestras, such as the Philharmonia, London Symphony and Royal Philharmonic. He’s also conducted leading orchestras around the world, including the Toronto and Sydney Symphonies, and the Seoul Philharmonic.
Wordsworth has had an extensive recording career; he is featured on dozens of releases and appears on many more. He has recorded on most of the major classical labels, including Naxos, Decca, ABC Classics, and Somm. He released two recordings in 2018: Léo Delibes: Coppélia with the Orchestra Victoria on ABC Classics, and Elgar: The Hills of Dreamland - Orchestral Songs with the BBC Concert Orchestra on Somm.
© Keith Finke /TiVo
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Maconchy: Symphony for Double String Orchestra - Serenata Concertante
London Philharmonic Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Manoug Parikian, Vernon Handley, Barry Wordsworth
Klassik - Erschienen bei Lyrita am 01.04.2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Jacob: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 2
London Philharmonic Orchestra, Barry Wordsworth
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The Last Night of the Proms Collection
Della Jones, Robert Ferriman, The Royal Choral Society, The BBC Concert Orchestra, Barry Wordsworth
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 01.01.1996
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Haydn: Symphonies, Vol. 4 (Nos. 45, 48, 102)
Capella Istropolitana, Barry Wordsworth
Klassik - Erschienen bei Naxos am 22.08.1990
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Janine Jansen
Janine Jansen, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Barry Wordsworth
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 01.01.2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Vaughan Williams: Orchestral Works
Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, Sir Neville Marriner, New Queen's Hall Orchestra, Barry Wordsworth, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Adrian Boult
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 01.01.1999
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
La Nuit de Noël
The BBC Concert Orchestra, Stephen Fry, BBC Singers, Rebecca Turner, Barry Wordsworth
Klassik - Erschienen bei Naxos am 01.11.2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Coppélia
Barry Wordsworth, Orchestra Victoria
Ballett - Erschienen bei ABC Classic am 06.07.2018
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Haydn: Symphonies, Vol. 3 (Nos. 44, 88, 104)
Capella Istropolitana, Barry Wordsworth
Klassik - Erschienen bei Naxos am 15.03.1990
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Haydn: Symphonies, Vol. 2 (Nos. 83, 94, 101)
Capella Istropolitana, Barry Wordsworth
Klassik - Erschienen bei Naxos am 15.03.1989
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Symphonies Nos. 25, 32 and 41
Capella Istropolitana, Barry Wordsworth
Klassik - Erschienen bei Naxos am 30.06.1988
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Jeffes: "Still Life" at the Penguin Café; Four Pieces for Orchestra
The BBC Concert Orchestra, Barry Wordsworth
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 01.01.1990
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
HAYDN: Symphonies, Vol. 5 (Nos. 85, 92, 103)
Capella Istropolitana, Barry Wordsworth
Symphonieorchester - Erschienen bei Naxos am 12.12.1990
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Delius: Orchestral Works
Barry Wordsworth, London Symphony Orchestra
Klassik - Erschienen bei Collins Classics am 06.05.1992
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Haydn: Symphonies, Vol. 1 (Nos. 82, 96, 100)
Capella Istropolitana, Barry Wordsworth
Klassik - Erschienen bei Naxos am 06.10.1988
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Benjamin: Overture to an Italian Comedy - Cotillon - North American Square Dance Suite - Symphony
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Myer Fredman, Nicholas Braithwaite, Barry Wordsworth
Klassik - Erschienen bei Lyrita am 01.02.2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Elgar : Orchestral Songs
Henk Neven, Barry Collett, Nathalie de Montmollin, The BBC Concert Orchestra, Barry Wordsworth, Kathryn Rudge
Weltliche Vokalmusik - Erschienen bei SOMM Recordings am 31.08.2018
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bryn Terfel sings Favourites
Bryn Terfel, London Symphony Orchestra, Barry Wordsworth
Klassik - Erschienen bei Deutsche Grammophon (DG) am 01.10.2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Vissi d'Arte - Opera for Orchestra
The BBC Concert Orchestra, Barry Wordsworth
Klassik - Erschienen bei Decca Music Group Ltd. am 04.11.1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Hérold, Lanchbery: La fille mal gardée
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Barry Wordsworth
Klassik - Erschienen bei Warner Classics am 09.11.2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ecce sacerdos magnus
Brighton Festival Chorus, The BBC Concert Orchestra, Barry Wordsworth
Klassik - Erschienen bei SOMM Recordings am 02.02.2018
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo