Chester Novello Winter News 2010

The British composer Geoffrey Burgon passed away peacefully on September 21 in the company of his family after a short illness. Burgon was internationally recognised as a composer of film and television music, notably his scores for Brideshead Revisited, The Chronicles of Narnia, Dr Who, Monty Python’s Life of Brian and from which his famous Nunc Dimittis theme music entered the UK charts .


His soundtrack to Brideshead Revisited went Gold, selling over 100,000 copies, and the music won Burgon his second Ivor Novello Award in 1981, two years after his first for Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. More recently Burgon won...

Opera & Ballet

A new opera by Peter Maxwell Davies has been commissioned by the Royal Academy of Music and the Julliard School of Music to be premiered in March 2011. Kommilitonen! will be directed by David Pountney. The UK premiere takes place at the RAM on March 18, and will premiere in the US on…...

Wallin’s Season

The annual festival for contemporary music in Zurich on November 11-14 will feature three works by Rolf Wallin with two of them voicing a strong political statement. Concerning King for string quartet and Strange News. The quartet takes one of the most...

Three composers have signed exclusive contracts with Music Sales companies in recent months. Chester Music is delighted to announce that it has signed an exclusive publishing agreement with Helen Grime. Britta Byström and Søren Nils Eichberg have joined Edition Wilhelm Hansen.

On October 24 at the Barbican in London Eric Whitacre will conduct a concert with the London Symphony Orchestra and Chorus and soprano Hila Plitman entitled Songs from America, including the world premiere of his new piece for chorus and orchestra Songs of Immortality...

Stage & Screen

Music Sales has produced a brand new Stage & Screen catalogue which profiles works available on hire, published by the Music Sales Group and works distributed by Music Sales including music for film and television, stage works and...

In 2011, Richard Rodney Bennett will celebrate his seventy-fifth birthday. Numerous celebrations will take place including concerts and events at festivals across the UK. Claire Martin and Richard will tour the UK in 2011. A concert including his music, followed by...