A consummate all-round musician, Carl Davis is widely known in many spheres of international music-making. Born in New York in 1936, he studied composition with Paul Nordoff and Hugo Kauder, and subsequently with Per Nørgaard in Copenhagen. He has been enormously successful in the world of theatre, composing scores for the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre. Davis is equally well-known in the field of dance. He began working with London Contemporary Dance Theatre in 1975. Sadlers Wells Royal Ballet commissioned A Picture of Dorian Gray in 1987, and this was followed by commissions from Northern Ballet Theatre. His most recent full-length ballet, commissioned by the English National Ballet, is based on themes by Tchaikovsky. Davis's output for film and television is vast, including The World At War, The Rainbow, The French Lieutenant's Woman (the winner of both the BAFTA and Ivor Novello awards), and Pride and Prejudice (nominated for a BASCA Ivor Novello award for Best Music For a Television Production in 1996). His 1980 score for Abel Gance's silent film Napoleon triggered an extraordinary revival of interest in the silent film, and Davis's oeuvre of more than twenty scores for this medium has brought him international acclaim. His most recent symphonic work, A Circle of Stones, consists of four symphonic pictures for orchestra and was written for Mike Mansfield Publications for broadcast on S4C in 1997. There are also many concert suites derived from film scores, vocal music, choral works, instrumental and chamber music, and opera.
Forthcoming performances:
Champions Theme
11.6.10, Grosvenor Hotel, London, United Kingdom: National Symphony Orchestra
One A.M.
22.7.10, Prospect Park, New York, NY, USA: cond. Carl Davis
Easy Street
22.7.10, Prospect Park, New York, NY, USA: cond. Carl Davis
Behind the Screen
22.7.10, Prospect Park, New York, NY, USA: cond. Carl Davis
Alice in Wonderland
24.7.10, Eton College, Windsor, United Kingdom: Susan Handy School of Dance
Alice in Wonderland
25.7.10, Eton College, Windsor, United Kingdom: Susan Handy School of Dance
Safety Last
30.10.10, Atwood Concert Hall, Anchorage, AL, USA: Anchorage Symphony Orchestra
Safety Last
21.11.10, , Switzerland:
One Week
18.1.11, Bedford, United Kingdom: Philharmonia Orchestra/Carl Davis
The General
18.1.11, Bedford, United Kingdom: Philharmonia Orchestra/Carl Davis
The Rink
18.1.11, Bedford Corn Exchange, United Kingdom: Philharmonia Orchestra/cond. Carl Davis
One Week
19.1.11, Leicester, United Kingdom: Philharmonia Orchestra/Carl Davis
The General
19.1.11, Leicester, United Kingdom: Philharmonia Orchestra/Carl Davis
The Rink
19.1.11, De Montfort Hall Leicester, United Kingdom: Philharmonia Orchestra/cond. Carl Davis
The General
22.1.11, Princes Hall, Aldershot, United Kingdom: Farnborough Symphony Orchestra/cond. Mark FitzGerald
The Rink ##
3.2.11, Koncertsalon Alsion, Sonderborg, Denmark: Sønderjyllands Symfonieorkester/cond. Carl Davis
The Rink
4.2.11, Koncertsalon Alsion, Sonderborg, Denmark: Sønderjyllands Symfonieorkester/cond. Carl Davis
The Immigrant
20.2.11, Salle Pleyel, Paris, France: Carl Davis
The Phantom of the Opera
27.3.11, Royal Festival Hall, London, United Kingdom: cond. Carl Davis/Philharmonia Orchestra