Kenneth Woods
Conductor Kenneth Woods is often active in Britain and serves as the principal conductor and artistic director of the English Symphony Orchestra. He is also a cellist who has recorded with his own string trio, an educator, a composer, and a popular blogger.
Woods was born in the U.S. in 1968. He studied conducting at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Woods went on for further conducting studies with David Zinman, Leonard Slatkin, Jorma Panula, and Gerhard Samuel. Zinman chose him as a fellow in the first class of the American Academy of Conducting in Aspen, Colorado, in 2000, and the following year, Slatkin selected him as one of four students at the Kennedy Center National Conducting Institute in Washington, D.C. By that time, Woods had already begun his professional career as conductor of the Dayton Philharmonic in Ohio and the Grande Ronde Symphony and Oregon East Symphony in Oregon. He taught conducting, strings, and chamber music at Eastern Oregon University from 1999 to 2002.
Woods' recording career took off when he became active in Britain in the late 2000s decade. In 2009, he was named principal guest conductor of the Orchestra of the Swan, and with that group and the Northern Sinfonia, he made the first complete recordings of the symphonies of Hans Gál, issued by the Avie label; that label has also released recordings of Woods' own works. Woods' arrangements for orchestra include those of the Brahms Piano Quartet No. 2 in A major, Op. 26, and Viktor Ullmann's String Quartet No. 3. The latter composer was one of those grouped by the Nazi regime in Germany under the heading Entartete Musik, and Woods has championed those composers in performance. He has been active as a guest conductor in both the U.S. and Britain, appearing with the National Symphony Orchestra, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic, and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, among other ensembles. He co-founded the Ensemble Epomeo string trio and, with that group, recorded trios by Gál and Hans Krása.
In 2013, Woods was named the principal conductor and artistic director of the English Symphony Orchestra; he remained in that position as of the early 2020s. He also became the artistic director of the Colorado MahlerFest in 2015 and continues to serve there. Woods has recorded frequently with the English Symphony Orchestra, leading the group on releases by Signum Classics and Nimbus Alliance. On the latter, he released an album of works by Philip Sawyers, a composer he has championed, in 2023. By that time, Woods' recording catalog comprised some 30 items. He writes the blog "A View from the Podium" and has written program notes for various organizations.
© James Manheim /TiVo
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Hans Gal & Robert Schumann : Symhonies No. 1
Orchestra of the Swan, Kenneth Woods
Classical - Released by AVIE Records on Mar 3, 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Turina: Rapsodia Sinfónica - Franck: Symphonic Variations - Falla: Nights in the Gardens of Spain
Valerie Tryon, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Kenneth Woods
Classical - Released by SOMM Recordings on Jun 10, 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Concerto for Viola & Orchestra: III. Allegro moderato (Single)
Classical - Released by Nimbus Alliance on Feb 24, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Symphony No. 2: III
BBC National Orchestra Of Wales, Kenneth Woods
Classical - Released by Signum Classics on Sep 19, 2019
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Symphony No. 1: II. Scherzando (Single)
English Symphony Orchestra, Kenneth Woods
Classical - Released by Nimbus Alliance on Aug 19, 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Brahms: Piano Quartet No. 2 in a Major, Op. 26 for Orchestra
Kenneth Woods, English Symphony Orchestra
Classical - Released by Nimbus Alliance on Jul 6, 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Two Lyric Pieces for Violin and Strings: II. Passacaglia (Single)
Classical - Released by Nimbus Alliance on Oct 29, 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Steve Elcock: Symphony No. 8 & Violin Concerto
Zoe Beyers, English Symphony Orchestra, Kenneth Woods
Classical - To be released on Jun 7, 2024 by Nimbus Alliance
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Violin Concerto: III. Passacaglia. Andante - Moderato - Più allegro - Allegro vivace - Subito presto - a tempo, minacciando - Allegro molto - Adagio - Più adagio - Ancora meno mosso (Single)
Zoe Beyers, English Symphony Orchestra, Kenneth Woods
Classical - Released by Nimbus Alliance on Apr 19, 2024
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Robert Saxton: Scenes from the Epic of Gilgamesh & The Resurrection of the Soldiers
English Symphony Orchestra, English String Orchestra, Kenneth Woods
Classical - To be released on Jul 5, 2024 by Nimbus Alliance
24-Bit 192.0 kHz - Stereo -
Triumph Over Trials
Rock - Released by 2A Vibes Records LTD on Jan 25, 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo