330:'s symphonies in Britain. He was also famous for encouraging modern composers, and he frequently included their works in his programmes. Groves conducted a wide repertory, refusing to concentrate on any particular subgenre. He remarked, "I feel myself a GP rather than a consultant." Nevertheless, he became particularly known as a champion of British composers and invariably offered British works in his programmes when touring abroad. His large British repertoire included the works of
254:". He spent nine months of every year with the RLPO, where he greatly improved standards of playing. In the other three months he guest conducted concerts and operas in London and overseas. He took the RLPO on highly acclaimed tours of Germany and Switzerland in 1966 and 1968, and Poland in 1970. During his time in Liverpool, Groves instituted a series of seminars for young conductors, and those who made early appearances there included
318:(1977–1992) and, especially during the last decade of his career, as guest conductor for numerous orchestras around the world. In 1984, he joined the English Sinfonia as president and artistic adviser, later also becoming principal conductor of the Guildford Philharmonic (1987) and music director of the Leeds Philharmonic Society (1988).
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said, "He managed to get the respect of the players and the affection of performers. He had an exemplary attitude and track record with regard to contemporary music. His policy of presenting second performances as well as first was selfless and idealistic." Groves's premières included works by
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in
Manchester from 1944 to 1951, conducting several studio concerts every week, and thereby acquiring an exceptionally large repertoire. While in Manchester he met a BBC colleague, Hilary Barchard, whom he married in 1948. Feeling the need to move from studio-based work, Groves accepted the
541:". Charles and Hilary Groves had three children, Sally, Mary and Jonathan, the first and last of whom entered the musical profession. Charles Groves suffered a heart attack early in 1992 and died in London, four months later, at the age of 77. A memorial stone to his memory was placed in
104:. He was naturally gifted with great fluency and the ability to sight read almost any music, but confessed, years later, to having been lazy about his piano studies, and he abandoned his ambitions to become a concert pianist. He played in the percussion section for
182:, England, to be resident chorus master for the BBC while it was evacuated from London. In 1943, he was invited to take charge of the BBC Revue Orchestra, playing mostly light music. During this time Groves conducted
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performed as guest conductor at the
College. Groves also went into the conducting class, but did not progress beyond the third orchestra. In 1937, while still a student, he accompanied choral rehearsals of
83:
choir and, from the age of 13, studying the piano and organ. Music was already important to him as a solace, as he was orphaned at the age of ten – his father having died in 1921 from injuries received in
220:, of which he became musical director from 1961 to 1963. Groves did much to establish that company's choral and orchestral traditions and conducted many performances of works then seldom staged, such as
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the appointment did not prove a success, and he relinquished the post the following year. He found combining administration with conducting too stressful for him. Groves also served as president of the
35:(10 March 1915 – 20 June 1992) was an English conductor. He was known for the breadth of his repertoire and for encouraging contemporary composers and young conductors.
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orchestras, Groves supported the alternative proposition by which the
Bournemouth orchestra took on the additional role of resident orchestra for the new
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Although the record companies tended to regard Groves as a specialist in
British music, he made recordings of German, French and Russian music including
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from 1951 to 1961, which he conducted about 150 times each year. When financial difficulties led to a proposal to merge the
Bournemouth and
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502:(whose council he chaired from 1973 to 1990, and where a building is named in his honour) and a Fellow of the Royal College of Music, the
518:" is a national award, named in his honour, given to an individual or organisation making an outstanding contribution to British music.
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Groves was particularly noted for his assured conducting of large-scale works and was the first conductor to direct a complete cycle of
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50:, beginning in 1963, with which he made most of his recordings. From 1967 until his death, Groves was associate conductor of the
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Away from the concert hall, Groves was a connoisseur of
English literature and also a keen sports fan. When young he played
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Groves is probably best known for his long tenure from 1963 to 1977 as Music
Director and Principal Conductor of the
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274:. At one seminar Groves noted the presence in the orchestra, as an extra percussion player, of a teenager named
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174:, where he worked on broadcast opera productions. At the outbreak of the Second World War, Groves was sent to
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92:, in Kent, where Groves Hall is named in honour of him. After leaving Sutton Valence School he attended the
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Groves was born in London, the only child of
Frederick Groves and Annie (née Whitehead). He was a pupil at
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861:, A & C Black, 1920–2007; online edn, Oxford University Press, December 2007, accessed 19 October 2008
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from 1977, and, during the last decade of his life, as guest conductor for orchestras around the world.
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About Sutton
Valence Music Society, history of Sutton Valence Music Society, accessed 7 October 2009
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Groves was noted for adding adventurous new works to the repertory of his orchestras. The composer
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Groves received many honours for his musical work, including being appointed an
Officer of the
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Groves began his professional career as a freelance accompanist, including work for the
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After accompanying positions and conducting various orchestras and studio work for the
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and his mother having died four years later. From 1930 until 1932 he was a pupil at
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in 1973. He received doctorates from four universities, was made a freeman of the
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and accompanying, but he became involved in student opera productions as a
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F team", as he self-deprecatingly put it, and as a cricketer was "a wily
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in 1978–1979, but in spite of a well-received and rare revival of
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From 1967 until his death, Groves was associate conductor of the
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992:, Oxford University Press, 2004, accessed 19 October 2008
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79:(where a house is now named after him), singing in the
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Principal Conductor, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
1468:Presidents of the Independent Society of Musicians
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648:British music recorded by Groves includes Arnold (
46:. His best-known musical directorship was of the
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242:, conducting, as he said, "everything from the
1438:People educated at St. Paul's Cathedral School
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712:, Cello Concerto (Paul Tortelier, cello),
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1077:"Making Music Sir Charles Groves Prize"
990:Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
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890:, March 1972, Feature on Charles Groves
1418:Conductors (music) awarded knighthoods
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1176:Music Director, English National Opera
1103:, Oxford Music Online, 21 October 2008
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240:Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
58:. He also served as president of the
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706:On hearing the first cuckoo in Spring
689:Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge
516:Making Music Sir Charles Groves Prize
1408:Alumni of the Royal College of Music
784:Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis
1458:20th-century British male musicians
957:Biography of Groves at Allmusic.com
504:Guildhall School of Music and Drama
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96:. There, his main studies were in
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526:as a tribute to Groves's memory.
300:Groves was Music Director of the
1034:EMI CD CDM 7 64526 2 liner notes
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210:Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
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626:, cello)). He also recorded
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203:Groves was conductor for the
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827:Spitfire Prelude & Fugue
619:Variations on a Rococo Theme
283:Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
52:Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
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484:Order of the British Empire
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121:A Village Romeo and Juliet
77:St Paul's Cathedral School
30:Sir Charles Barnard Groves
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478:Honours and personal life
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1017:Profile at Divineart.com
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736:, Serenade for Strings,
668:(Symphonies 8 & 9);
508:Trinity College of Music
316:National Youth Orchestra
60:National Youth Orchestra
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1022:8 February 2007 at the
571:Masques et bergamasques
524:Sir Charles: his Pavane
512:London College of Music
287:Last Night of the Proms
56:Last Night of the Proms
1082:9 October 2008 at the
917:obituary, 22 June 1992
404:Ralph Vaughan Williams
302:English National Opera
205:BBC Northern Orchestra
94:Royal College of Music
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208:conductorship of the
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520:Peter Maxwell Davies
396:Peter Maxwell Davies
244:St John Passion
232:The Sicilian Vespers
218:Welsh National Opera
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821:Prelude and Suite,
744:, violin)); Holst (
740:, Violin Concerto (
543:St Paul's Cathedral
264:John Eliot Gardiner
1101:Grove Music Online
984:Ponsonby, Robert.
955:Cummings, Robert.
795:Capriccio burlesco
352:George Butterworth
195:in the lead role.
126:Sir Thomas Beecham
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591:Symphony No 104,
193:Gertrude Lawrence
172:Stanford Robinson
16:British conductor
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714:Chanson de matin
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360:Frederick Delius
348:Benjamin Britten
272:Barry Wordsworth
199:Conducting posts
188:Lady in the Dark
161:Arturo Toscanini
106:Vaughan Williams
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718:Chanson de nuit
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456:Priaulx Rainier
440:Jonathan Harvey
428:Justin Connolly
420:Lennox Berkeley
400:Arthur Sullivan
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368:Alexander Goehr
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661:Morning Heroes
632:Sixth Symphony
624:Paul Tortelier
583:Symphony No 92
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1388:1992 deaths
1383:1915 births
1337:Libor Pešek
1301:Efrem Kurtz
1277:Louis Cohen
1268:(1896-1913)
884:Blyth, Alan
858:Who Was Who
819:Richard III
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751:The Planets
696:); Delius (
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614:Tchaikovsky
610:Gymnopédies
539:slow bowler
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424:David Blake
356:Eric Coates
252:Stockhausen
86:World War I
71:Early years
1377:Categories
1272:Henry Wood
1186:Mark Elder
1180:1978–1979
1153:1951–1961
1062:4 November
710:Caractacus
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549:Recordings
510:, and the
488:knighthood
322:Repertoire
268:James Judd
260:Mark Elder
226:I Lombardi
214:Birmingham
102:répétiteur
1254:Max Bruch
1044:The Times
1002:The Times
914:The Times
760:Overture
742:Hugh Bean
555:Beethoven
472:Hugh Wood
310:Euryanthe
151:Beethoven
81:Cathedral
1126:AllMusic
1080:Archived
1020:Archived
762:Di Ballo
636:Sibelius
533:"in the
248:Messiaen
1279:(1930s)
1097:"Pavan"
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724:Suite,
679:The Sea
306:Weber's
222:Verdi's
184:Weill's
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176:Evesham
146:Requiem
1363:(2021)
1357:(2006)
1351:(2001)
1345:(1997)
1339:(1987)
1333:(1983)
1327:(1980)
1321:(1977)
1315:(1963)
1309:(1957)
1303:(1955)
1297:(1954)
1291:(1948)
1285:(1942)
1262:(1883)
1256:(1880)
1250:(1867)
1244:(1865)
1238:(1843)
805:Hamlet
698:Koanga
684:Summer
670:Bridge
628:Dvorak
622:(with
612:) and
593:London
587:Oxford
575:Pavane
522:wrote
159:under
131:Brahms
116:Delius
98:lieder
841:Notes
773:Irish
666:Brian
606:Satie
598:Ravel
579:Haydn
567:Fauré
535:Wasps
531:rugby
191:with
141:Verdi
124:when
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