TDCM: October 11th - John Joubert

 

Listening Through The Dictionary of Composers and Their Music 

John Joubert (1927-2019)

Bio

John Pierre Herman Joubert was born in Cape Town, South Africa. He studied at Diocesan College and then at the South African College of Music. He was tutored by William Henry Bell and earned a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music in London. He taught at various schools around England and the Commonwealth, including a notable stay in New Zealand. He was a prominent composer into his 80s and produced a vast catalog.  

Music

Symphony No. 1

Symphony No .2

Violin Concerto

Piano Concerto

Gong, Tormented Sea

TDCM: October 10th - Josquin des Prez

 

Listening Through The Dictionary of Composers and Their Music 

Josquin des Prez (c1440-1521)

Bio

Josquin Lebloitte dit des Prez was one of the most influential High Renaissance composers. Little is known of his life but his music was incredibly important to both his closer contemporaries and modern musical theorists. He is a central figure of the Franco-Flemish school and is probably the second most notable Renaissance composer behind Palestrina.   

Music

Motets & Chansons

Missa L'Homme Armé

Missa Gaudeamus & Motets a la Vierge

Musica Reservata

TDCM: October 7th - Wilfred Josephs

 

Listening Through The Dictionary of Composers and Their Music 

Wilfred Josephs (1927-1997)

Bio

Wilfred Josephs was born in Gosforth to Russian-Jewish immigrant parents. He studied music at Newcastle but instead became a dentist. He composed in his free time and won the La Scala which convinced him to compose full-time. He was prolific, composing for TV series, commissions, and the stage.    

Music

Aelian Dances for orchestra, based on Newcastle tunes

Symphony No. 5 "Pastorale"

Symphony No. 4

Symphony No. 3 "Philadelphia"

Piano Concerto No. 1

TDCM: October 6th - Joseph Jongen

 

Listening Through The Dictionary of Composers and Their Music 

Joseph Jongen (1873-1953)

Bio

Joseph Marie Alphonse Nicolas Jongen was born in Liège and entered the hometown Conservatory at the incredible age of seven. He actively composed for nearly sixty years and taught at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels. He briefly lived in England during World War I but otherwise was a fixture in his home country of Belgium.  

Music

Symphonie Concertante

Impressions d'ardennes for orchestra

String Trio

Cinq pièces pour piano

String Quartet No. 2

Rhapsodie

TDCM: October 5th - Daniel Jones

 

Listening Through The Dictionary of Composers and Their Music 

Daniel Jones (1912-1993)

Bio

Daniel Jenkyn Jones, OBE was born in Pembroke, Wales. He studied first at Swansea University and then at the Royal Academy of Music. He served in World War I as a cryptographer and decoder at Bletchley Park. Jones developed his own composition system called Complex Metres and wrote in tonal and serial techniques.  

Music

Symphony No. 2

Symphony No. 10

Symphony No. 8

Symphony No. 4

Symphony No. 13

Symphony No. 12

Symphony No. 5

TDCM: October 4th - Robert Johnson

 

Listening Through The Dictionary of Composers and Their Music 

Robert Johnson (c1583-1633)

Bio

Robert Johnson was the son of the lutenist for Elizabeth I. Robert was taken in by a Baron as an apprentice in the same family that patronized John Dowland. Johnson learned composition and became a lutenist to James I. He remained in that role for James' reign and part of Charles I's before his death.  

Music

Lute Music

The Temporiser

Alman

TDCM: October 3rd - Leoš Janáček

 

Listening Through The Dictionary of Composers and Their Music 

Leoš Janáček (1854-1928)

Bio

Janáček was born in Hukvaldy, Moravia in modern day Czechia. He showed skill as a child and studied at the Prague Organ School. He had little means and did his early composing on a drawing of a keyboard on a table. He enrolled in the Leipzig Conservatory but was turned down by Saint-Saëns before moving to the Vienna Conservatory. He focused on local folk music in his compositions and was influenced by his famous countrymen, Smetana and Dvořák. 

Music

In the Mists

On an overgrown path

String Quartet No. 2 "Intimate Letters"

Taras Bulba

Idyll

Sinfonietta

Suite for String Orchestra

Piano Works