Edward Gregson has written a new work for oboe and percussion entitled Shadow of Paradise. The work was written for, and is dedicated to Melinda Maxwell, the celebrated English oboist who is also Consultant in Woodwind Studies at the Royal Northern College of Music.

The work has just been released on CD (Dutton Digital, Epoch label: CDLX7180) along with a number of other premiere recordings of works written for Melinda Maxwell by Sir Harrison Birtwistle, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, Adam Gorb and Melinda Maxwell herself).

For the Gregson premiere, she is joined by the percussionist, Richard Benjafield.

Shadow of Paradise…

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Edward Gregson’s new concerto for cello and chamber orchestra – A Song for Chris – will receive its world premiere at the RNCM Manchester International Cello Festival on Thursday, 3 May in the Haden Freeman Concert Hall, Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM). The new work will be premiered by Li-Wei with the Manchester Camerata, conducted by Douglas Boyd.

The work is dedicated to Christopher Rowland, Director of Chamber Music at the RNCM, who is valiantly fighting cancer and who is a close colleague and friend of the composer.

The concerto lasts for some eighteen minutes and is cast in …

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Edward Gregson’s new saxophone concerto will be broadcast on BBC Radio 3 on Tuesday, 30th May at 2pm. His Violin Concerto is also being performed.

• Elgar Pomp and Circumstance March No 1*
• Gregson Violin Concerto **
• Cyril Scott Early One Morning **
• Elgar In the South – Overture ***
• Gregson Saxophone Concerto ****

• Gianandrea Noseda conductor *
• Martyn Brabbins conductor **
• Vassily Sinaisky conductor ***
• Clark Rundellconductor ****
• Olivier Charlier violin
• Nobuya Sugawa saxophone

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Edward Gregson, Principal of the RNCM, has written a new saxophone concerto which will receive its world premiere at the final concert of Sonic Skylines, a festival of contemporary music by composers living and working in Manchester.

The saxophone concerto is the latest in a series of concertos Gregson has composed since the beginning of his career, all of which have been written for distinguished soloists commencing with the Horn Concerto (written for Ifor James in 1971), and more recently the highly acclaimed Clarinet Concerto (for Michael Collins in 1994), Concerto for Piano and Winds (for John McCabe in 1997), …

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