Andrew Thomas composer - conductor

Latest News:

October 2017 - Duo Van Vliet's premiere performance at the St Magnus Festival of TheSound of Waves will be broadcast on BBC Radio 3's 'Lunchtime Concert' on Thursday 12th October and be available on the iPlayer afterwards.

June 2017 - Updated performances (including St Magnus Festival) added to the site...)

February 2017 - I've finally got round to editing and posting the video from my Noh project with Sound and Music/MU:Arts on the watch page of the site.

January 2017 - It's been a while... The first performance of Flowers aren't they? went very well and hopefully i should have a recording of the piece on the site soon. I'm also finally working hard on my piece for Rafal Luc and Ian Anderson (accordion and viola) which will be premiered at the St Magnus Festival, Orkney, in June 2017.

September 2016 - After a busy summer I've nearly finished my Hermes Experiment piece (Flowers aren't they?) which will be performed on 16th November. We had a wonderful workshop at the end of August and it should be a great concert... I've also started my new role as MD for the Rushmoor Choral Society - we'll be doing a concert of French choral music in November. And finally I've had my first few days in my new post as head of woodwind at Cranleigh School which will also involve composition teaching. It's been a tough first week but I'm really looking forward to the challenge.

June 2016 - The Noh project was a huge success and was a wonderful experience working with such wonderful musicians. I've added a short video about the project to the site here. I'm finally getting started on my Hermes Experiment/New Dots piece and am in rehearsal for a performance of And the bird by the water is turning white on September 16th.

April 2016 - Following the birth of my second child things have been busy but I've finished my portfolio piece - Ever Deeper Flood - (which is now in rehearsal) and it will be performed by some amazing musicians including Lore Lixenberg and Isso Yukihiro on the 14th May at Kings Place (see events). I'm now starting my piece for the Hermes Experiment... Also arranging a new performance of And the bird by the water is turning white in the Autumn.

November 2015 - More good news! I've been shortlisted for Britten Sinfonia's 'OPUS 2016' scheme and will be writing a piano trio for them which will be workshoped and performed at the Barbican in January 2016. I'm also now hard at work on my Sound and Music piece for the Portfolio scheme...

October 2015 - Good news, I've been selected to work with the new music organisation New Dots to write a piece for the brilliant ensemble The Hermes Experiment. The piece will be influenced by my research into Japanese Noh drama and premiered by the group in November 2016.

September 2015 - Another amazing week spent in Aldeburgh producing 'Charlie Grimes' with an amazing cast of singers and musicians. Lots learnt and plenty of new projects discussed whilst there.

August 2015 - I've just finished a 3 week residency studying Japanese Noh Drama supported by Sound and Music's Portfolio Scheme. The project now involves a commission for a Noh festival at Kings Place in May 2016. I'll be writing for a noh actor and musicians alongside a small ensemble of western instruments.

July 2015 - Work has begun in earnest on 'Charlie Grimes' for the Jerwood Opera Writing Course...

April 2015 - Where does the time go? I'm about to start work on a commission from the exciting viola and accordion duo 'Duo Van Vliet' (Rafal Luc and Ian Anderson). It's going to be called 'The Sound of Waves', will involve some aspect of electronics and hopefully be premiered at next summer's St Magnus Festival. I'm also starting work on my 10 minute opera for Aldeburgh Music with the American writer 'Daniel Solon'.

January 2015 - Dr K piece is finished and in rehearsal as we speak. It's called 'Einfaltiges Lied' and is scored for soprano, piccolo, clarinet, piano, percussion, violin, cello and tape. The first performance is going to be given by Lesley-Jane Rogers (soprano) and the Dr. K Sextet on 22nd January at Club Inegales (see events).

December 20114 - Amazing week in Aldeburgh on the opera course, lots of brilliant people and ideas to build on ready for the next week in March. Also pleased to say that AAnd the bird by the water is turning white for flute and electronics is going to be performed for the third time at the Froniters Plus festival in Birmingham on 17th March (see events).

November 2014 - I've just got back from my viva voce with Colin Matthews and Howard Skempton and can now officially call myself doctor having had my PhD approved! I'm also about to start working on a piece for the Dr K Sextet for voice and ensemble to be played during a Kabaret evening at Club Inegales (London) in January. More details to follow. Also very excited about heading to Aldeburgh next week to start the Jerwood Opera Writing Scheme.

October 2014 - Just starting work on an anthem for St Giles-in-the-Fields for Easter 2015. Hope to announce more projects in the coming months....

September 2014 - I'm back! I've just submitted my PhD - it took a lot longer than thought (hence the absence) but I'm hoping to get writing again soon. Whilst I've been away I've been selected for the Jerwood Opera Writing Scheme at Aldeburgh (part of the Britten Pears YAP) and am currently arranging a few other projects. In other news you can see my And the Bird by the Water is Turning White for flute and electronics at the Coulourscape 25th Anniversary Festival on Clapham Common on Saturday 20th September.

I'm also delighted to say that my Journeys to Recover the Future has been nominated for a BASCA British Composer Award.

March 2014 - The mix for my flute and electronics piece is finished and should hopefully be up on the London Sinfonietta's website (and this site) shortly so keep an eye out! I'm off to Birmingham on Tuesday (4th March) for a workshop with the BCMG on Journeys to relive the past which I'm really looking forward to. I'm also writing up the written portion of my PhD at the moment and trying to arrange my writing for the next few months!!

February 2014 - Journeys to Recover the Future received an excellent performance by CHROMA at Kettle's Yard and was very well received. I'm currently editing a live recording and trying to get permission from the players to post it on the site. I've also joined Twitter(!) so check out my feed @andrewt_music.

January 2014 - I've just spent the day in North London with Sound Intermedia and the London Sinfonietta recording the piece they commissioned from me. I'm going to be mastering the recording with Ian from SI in the next few weeks and then, in the first instance, the recording will be available on the LS' website. Also working on a score for a workshop in Birmingham with the BCMG.

December 2013 - Another busy few months!! My piece for the London Sinfonietta was performed at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, London and was a great success and performed brilliantly by David Cuthbert. A recording is now in the pipeline and I'll post a 'rough' live recording in the next week or so. I've also completed my Chroma commission for flute, clarinet, piano, percussion, violin and cello. It's called Journeys to Recover the Future. The first performance will be in January at Kettle's Yard.

October 2013 - It's been a very busy few months. I've recently completed my London Sinfonietta Commission - And the Bird by the Water is Turning White - for flute and electronics and I have a session with the flautist David Cuthbert in early November to try and get the piece sorted ready for the premiere at the Southbank in December. I've now turned my attention to my Kettle's Yard (Chroma) commission which has a working title of Journeys to Recover the Future (after Italo Calvinho). The piece is progressing well so far.

August 2013 - Solo piano piece is finished - four miniatures linked by the theme of 'night' (as yet untitled!) or, more precisely, nights since my son was born! Also started working on my piece for the London Sinfonietta scored for flute and electronics. This will then be followed by a commission for Chroma which will be performed at Kettle's Yard Cambridge in early 2013 (more details to follow).

July 2013 - As promised, some more details on the commissions. I've been commissioned as part of the London Sinfonietta's 'Writing the Future' programme to compose a new piece for their 'Festival in a Day' at London's Southbank in December. The work will involve collaboration with a designer from Central St. Martin's. First step is to decide the instrumentation. Hopefully I can reveal the other projects soon.

June 2013 - An exciting month with a number of commissions and projects being lined up - more details to follow. Completed major revisions of Re-oscillations (so major that the piece is now called Five Little Pieces). The new piece will be performed by the Worker's Union Ensemble in Birmingham in late October (more details soon). Also starting work on a solo piano piece for a CD of music related to 'night'.

May 2013 - Final concert for the LCO project went well. Look out for the recording on the site soon. We had a few 'technical glitches' with the piano but all in all it was a great experience. Also, have a look at the video of Song Fragments from Belgrade. Just about to start revising my Worker's Union piece for October.

April 2013 - The LCO workshop was a success! Fantastic players and ensemble, a few revisions to do on the piece before the concert at Cadogan Hall in May.

March 2013 - LCO piece is finished!! The work ended up having an additional instrument (a viola) and has the title Till Human Voices Wake Us (from T.S. Eliot). A tricky piece to compose but rewarding - looking forward to the workshop in April (see event listings) before the final concert at Cadogan Hall in May.

February 2013 - Andrew has been selected to compose a new work for the London Chamber Orchestra to be performed at Cadogan Hall in May. The work will be for flute, clarinet, violin, cello and magnetic-resonator piano (a standard grand piano enhanced by digital technology developed by Andrew Robertson). More details to follow as the project progresses.

January 2013 - Re-oscillations for soprano saxophone, piano, percussion and tape will receive it's first performance by the Workers Union Ensemble in a workshop led by Michael Finnissy at the University of Southampton as part of an RMA conference on 4th January. See event listings for more information.

December 2012 - You can see Andrew perform the bass solo role in Handel's Messiah at St. Giles-in-the-Field's, London, on Wednesday 19th December at 6pm.

November 2012 - Andrew's arrangement of Mark Anthony Turnages Sweet and Decay from 'Blood on the Floor' has received its first performance in Birmingham by the Thallein Ensemble conducted by Sian Edwards. The piece will then be toured in the Netherlands by Orkest de Ereprijs in December 2012 (and possibly more dates in 2013). See event listings for more details.

Also in November Andrew's Song Fragments for baritone and ensemble received their third performance of the year at the 21st International Review of composers in Belgrade. They received an excellent performance from Construction Site Ensemble conducted by Premil Petrovic with baritone Vladimir Dinic. You can hear the recording in the listen section of the site.