Garry Walker

Last updated
Garry Walker
Born1974
NationalityScottish
Known forOrchestral conducting

Garry Walker (born 1974, Edinburgh) is a Scottish conductor.

Contents

Biography

Walker received his secondary school education at St Mary's Music School. [1] His initial musical training was as a cellist, [2] and he subsequently played cello in the Edinburgh Youth Orchestra. In 1995, Walker graduated from the Royal Northern College of Music and Manchester University. [3]

In 1999, Walker won the Leeds Conductors Competition. [4] He subsequently became associate conductor of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO). [5] He subsequently served as principal guest conductor of the RSNO from 2003 to 2007. [6] [2]

Walker has also served as conductor of the Edinburgh Youth Orchestra, principal conductor of the Paragon Ensemble, [5] and was a regular guest conductor of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. [2] He has served on the faculty of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (RCS) as a visiting professor of conducting, and the RCS formally created the post of artistic director. In November 2015, the Staatsorchester Rheinische Philharmonie announced the appointment of Walker as its chief conductor, effective with the 2017–2018 season. [7] In June 2019, Opera North announced the appointment of Walker as its next music director, effective with the 2020–2021 season. [8] In February 2020, the Staatsorchester Rheinische Philharmonie announced that Walker is to stand down as its chief conductor at the close of the 2021-2022 season. [9]

As one of his hobbies, Walker enjoys climbing mountains. [2] He completed his goal to climb all 284 Munros. [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Conservatoire of Scotland</span> Conservatoire in Glasgow, Scotland, UK

The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, formerly the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama is a conservatoire of dance, drama, music, production, and film in Glasgow, Scotland. It is a member of the Federation of Drama Schools.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Scottish National Orchestra</span> Scotlands national symphony orchestra based in Glasgow

The Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO) is a Scottish orchestra, based in Glasgow. It is one of the five national performing arts companies of Scotland. Throughout its history, the Orchestra has played an important part in Scotland’s musical life, including performing at the opening ceremony of the Scottish Parliament building in 2004.

Stéphane Denève is a French conductor. He is currently music director of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and artistic director of the New World Symphony.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jessica Cottis</span> Australian-British conductor

Jessica Cottis is an Australian-British conductor. She is currently artistic director and chief conductor of the Canberra Symphony Orchestra.

Johannes Stert is an internationally active German conductor and composer.

Rory Macdonald is a Scottish conductor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alun Francis</span> Welsh conductor

Alun Francis is a Welsh conductor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Søndergård</span> Danish conductor and percussionist

Thomas Søndergård is a Danish conductor and percussionist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz</span> German symphony orchestra

The Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz is a German orchestra based in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, in Ludwigshafen am Rhein.

Benjamin Shwartz is an American-Israeli orchestral and opera conductor, and music director of the Staatsorchester Rheinische Philharmonie, Koblenz (Germany). Formerly he held the position of music director of the Wrocław Philharmonic known for his interest in and commitment to new music. Born in Los Angeles and raised there and in Israel, he attended the Idyllwild Arts Academy in California before enrolling in the University of Pennsylvania, where he studied composition with James Primosch. He continued his composition studies in Germany with Karlheinz Stockhausen. As a conducting student at the Curtis Institute of Music, he studied with Otto-Werner Mueller and worked closely with Christoph Eschenbach and Ned Rorem. Shwartz won numerous awards including the Presser Award, and Third Prize in the 2007 International Mahler Conducting Competition in Bamberg, Germany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Mainz</span> German symphony orchestra

The Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Mainz, is the resident orchestra of the Staatstheater Mainz. In addition to musical theatre and Tanztheater, youth symphony and chamber concerts are part of the activity of the orchestra. It is one of the three state symphony orchestras of Rhineland-Palatinate. Since September 2011, Hermann Bäumer has been principal conductor.

Holly Mathieson is a New Zealand conductor and music academic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christopher Ward (conductor)</span> British conductor (born 1980)

Christopher Ward is a British conductor. In August 2018 he became the music director of Theater Aachen.

The Royal Scottish National Orchestra Chorus, or RSNO Chorus for short, is a choir based in Scotland and founded in 1843. Its main role is to perform alongside the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. The chorus holds open rehearsals for potential new members, rehearses on Wednesdays in Glasgow, and has also toured around the world. It is directed by Gregory Batsleer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Albert Horne</span> South African conductor

Albert Horne is a South African-born chorus master and orchestral conductor, whose focus is opera chorus preparation and operatic performances. He worked for the Cape Town Opera and has been chorus master and conductor at the Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden since 2014.

Ryan Bancroft is an American conductor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marjory Dougal</span> Scottish youth orchestra administrator (1943–2020)

Marjory Dougal was a highly respected and influential administrator and vice-president of the Edinburgh Youth Orchestra for thirty years.

Christian Kluttig is a German conductor, pianist and Hochschullehrer. From 1979 to 1990, he was chief conductor of the Orchester des Opernhauses Halle. Appointed General Music Director in 1983, he worked as such at the theatres in Halle (Saale) and Theater Koblenz. The Handel interpreter rendered special services to the implementation of Historically informed performance in the Saale city, which made him one of the most important protagonists in this field in the GDR. He also devoted himself to Neue Musik, premiering Reiner Bredemeyer's opera Candide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Staatsorchester Rheinische Philharmonie</span> Symphony orchestra in Koblenz, Germany

The Staatsorchester Rheinische Philharmonie, also known as the Rheinische Philharmonie, is a professional symphony orchestra in Koblenz, Germany. Founded in Autumn of 1945, it was adopted as an orchestra of the German state with state tax support in 1973. It is the resident orchestra of the concert venue Rhein-Mosel-Halle in Koblenz. Former principal conductors of the orchestra include Walter May, Carl August Vogt, Claro Mizerit, Walter Crabeels, Pierre Stoll, James Lockhart, Christian Kluttig, and Garry Walker. The orchestra has a good reputation internationally. Conductor Benjamin Shwartz serves as the orchestra's current musical director.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kerem Hasan</span> British-Cypriot conductor

Kerem Hasan is a British-Cypriot conductor. Winner of the 2017 Nestlé and Saltzburg Festival Young Conductors Award. From 2019 to 2023, Hasan served as the Chief Conductor of the Tiroler Symphonieorchester Innsbruck in Austria. Prior to that, he was appointed the Associate Conductor of the Welsh National Opera in 2017 at the age of 25.

References

  1. Conrad Wilson (27 June 2007). "Music". The Herald . Retrieved 3 November 2009.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Cornwell, Tim (7 February 2004). "Climb every mountain". The Scotsman . Retrieved 3 November 2009.
  3. Markowitz, Michael (24 September 2003). "Garry Walker Named Principal Guest Conductor of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra". The Scotsman . Archived from the original on 28 November 2006. Retrieved 3 November 2009.
  4. Michael Tumelty (16 November 2004). "A man with a mission: Garry Walker tells Michael Tumelty why he is determined to bring new music to his audience". Herald Scotland. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
  5. 1 2 Michael Tumelty (11 June 2002). "Work is pouring in for conductor Garry Walker". Herald Scotland. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
  6. Kate Molleson (27 January 2016). "Interview: Garry Walker". The Herald. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
  7. "Garry Walker wird neuer Chefdirigent des Staatsorchesters Rheinische Philharmonie" (Press release). Rhineland Pfalz Ministerium für Familie, Frauen, Kultur und Integration. 23 November 2015. Retrieved 16 May 2021.
  8. "Opera North announces new musical leadership" (Press release). Opera North. 24 June 2019. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
  9. "Rheinische Philharmonie: Walker verlängert nicht" (Press release). Rhineland Pfalz Ministerium für Familie, Frauen, Kultur und Integration. 11 February 2020. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
  10. Tumelty, Michael (27 September 2008). "Peak practice fr rom[sic] a young conductor used to scaling the heights". The Herald . Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 3 November 2009.
Cultural offices
Preceded by
Daniel Raiskin
Chief Conductor, Staatsorchester Rheinische Philharmonie
2017–2022
Succeeded by
Preceded by Music Director, Opera North
2020-present
Succeeded by
incumbent