Justin Connolly

Justin Riveagh Connolly (11 August 1933 – 29 September 2020) was a British composer and teacher.

Life Justin Connolly was born on 11 August 1933 in London. He was the son of John D'Arcy-Dawson, a journalist and author, and his wife Barbara (née Little). He changed his surname from D'Arcy-Dawson to that of his father's biological father in his early 20s.

He was educated at Westminster School, went on to national service in the Army, and briefly studied law at the Middle Temple before deciding on a career in music. From 1958 he studied at the Royal College of Music – composition with Peter Racine Fricker, piano with Lamar Crowson and conducting with Sir Adrian Boult – graduating with a BMus degree. At the same time he had informal contact with Roberto Gerhard. From 1963 to 1965 he attended Yale University on a Harkness Fellowship, where he studied with Mel Powell. He subsequently taught at Yale for 18 months before returning to the UK in 1967. He taught for many years at the Royal College of Music, later moving to the Royal Academy of Music, retiring from teaching in 1995.

Justin Connolly died on 29 September 2020, in London.

Compositional career

His music is published by Novello & Co (Wise Music Group).

Performers of his music have included conductors David Atherton, Pierre Boulez, who premiered one of his orchestra works, Norman Del Mar, Sir Charles Groves, Gustav Meier, Roger Norrington, David Porcelijn, soloists Ronald K. Anderson, Jane Manning, Gillian Weir, Ralph Kirshbaum, Frederick Riddle, Bertram Turetzky, Harry Sparnaay, John Wallace, Susan Bradshaw, Stephen Savage, Nicolas Hodges, Marilyn Nonken, Chisato Kusunoki, as well as the London Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, London Sinfonietta, the Nash Ensemble and the Pierrot Players.

Connolly was highly regarded as a teacher. His students included Catherine Jones, Minna Keal, Jay Alan Yim, Geoffrey King, Andrew McBirnie, Alwynne Pritchard and Kevin Raftery.

Style

Of Connolly's early music, Anthony Payne wrote (in 1971):

On arrival in the US, Connolly's development was swift, such that Anthony Gilbert (writing in 2012) could describe the premieres of Antiphonies and Poems of Wallace Stevens I in the late 60s both as "electrifying". His subsequent music continues the outwardly modernist idiom, rigorously crafted: glittering, sometimes pointillist, often concerned with the interplay of complex and detailed textures. Some works refer to dance forms, and often a dance-like energy contributes to the forward propulsion (Cinquepaces, Antiphonies, Ceilidh, Canaries); at the same time his music often explores ideas related to philosophy, literature and history, with even non-vocal works sometimes having their roots in poetry (Sestina A and B, Sonatina II: Ennead, Tesserae F). Others yet refer to the composer's strong affinity with the music of the nineteenth century, such as the Tesserae series of works, all based on a hymn-tune by Parry, or his several arrangements of works by Brahms.

Connolly's mature output has been described as "characterized by clear groupings, by massive overall integrity, and by movement upwards, inwards and outwards towards the op. 42 Piano Concerto of 2001-3". He composed works in all genres apart from opera. His purely orchestral works are limited to earlier works (Antiphonies, op. 4, Obbligati for orchestra (1966)), but both incorporate spatialised orchestras. Anthony Gilbert described Antiphonies thus:

After these works, Connolly's orchestral output concentrated on the dramatic possibilities inherent in the concerto form: Anima written for violist Frederick Riddle, Diaphony for organ and orchestra written for Gillian Weir, and the aforementioned Piano Concerto written for Nicolas Hodges (the result of a BBC commission, premièred in 2003). He also wrote a large concertante work for the London Sinfonietta, Obbligati III, with solo clarinet, trumpet and cor anglais.

Connolly was known for his sensitive and dramatic setting of poetry throughout his output. He composed four cycles to poems by Wallace Stevens, also setting Henry Vaughan, George Seferis, Sappho, Drummond of Hawthornden, Thomas Traherne, Friedrich Hölderlin, and Japanese poetry. Poems of Wallace Stevens II has been described as follows:

Chamber works include a brass quintet Cinquepaces, cycles such as the six Tesserae and six Triads all for different soloists or groupings, as well as solo works such as three Sonatinas for piano solo, and solo works for bass clarinet, flute, viola and cello.

Between 1968 and 1971 Connolly collaborated extensively with Peter Zinovieff at the Putney EMS studio, producing six works. Of these only Tesserae D for trumpet and tape is available for performance. Anthony Payne chose to end his early survey of Connolly's work by describing this corner of his output:

He also composed Triad VI for viola, piano and tape, with the collaboration of Lawrence Casserley.

List of completed works Sonatina in Five Studies, Op. 1, piano, 1962, rev.1983 Triad I, Op. 2, tpt, vla, pno, 1964 Obbligati I, Op. 3, 13 instruments, 1966 Antiphonies, Op. 4, orchestra, 1966 Cinquepaces, Op. 5, brass quintet, 1965 Triad IIa, Op. 6/I, dbass, perc, piano, 1965 Triad IIb, Op. 6/II, dbass, perc, piano, 1982 Prose, Op. 7a, SATB, 1967 Verse, Op. 7b, SSAATTBB, 1969 Triad III, Op. 8, ob, va, vc, 1966 Poems of Wallace Stevens I, Op. 9, S, 7 insts, 1967 M-piriform, Op. 10, S, vln, fl, tape, 1968 (with Peter Zinovieff) The Garden of Forking Paths, Op. 11a, piano duet, 1969 Fourfold, for two pianos, Op. 11b, 1983, from The Garden of Forking Paths Triad IV, Op. 12, fl, 2 perc, tape, 1969 Obbligati II, Op. 13, fl, cl, vln, vcl, piano, tape, 1969 (with Peter Zinovieff) Poems of Wallace Stevens II, Op. 14, S, cl, pno, 1970 Tesserae A, Op. 15/I, ob, hpd, 1968, rev. ob, pno, 1983 Tesserae B, Op. 15/II, fl, pf, 1970 Tesserae C, Op. 15/III, cello solo, 1971 Tesserae D, Op. 15/IV, tpt, tape, 1971 Tesserae E, Op. 15/V, fl, db, 1972 Tesserae F, Op. 15/VI, bass clarinet solo, 1999 Poems of Henry Vaughan, Op. 16, 1&3: SATB. 2: SSATB, 1970 Rebus, Op. 17, orch., 1971 (lost presumed destroyed) Poems of Wallace Stevens III, Op. 18, sop, pno, tape 1971 Triad V, Op. 19, cl, vln, vc, 1971 Obbligati III, Op. 20, 20 inst., 1971 (commissioned by the London Sinfonietta, premiere April 14, 1971) Triad VI, Op. 21, vla, pf, tape, 1974 Tetramorph, Op. 22, strings, tape, 1972 Divisions, Op. 23, wind band, 1972 Waka, Op. 24, mezzo, pf, 1972, rev. 1981 Sestina A, Op. 25a, pf, fl, ob, cl, hn, bsn, 1972 (lost) Sestina B, Op. 25b, fl, ob, bcl, vln, vc, hpsd, 1972, rev. 1978 Sonatina No. 2: Ennead, Op. 26, piano, 2000 Anima, Op. 27, vla, orch, 1974 Obbligati IV, Op. 28, ensemble, 1974 Ceilidh, Op. 29/I, 4 vln, 1976 Celebratio super Ter in lyris Leo, Op. 29/II, 3 vla, accordion, 1994 Collana, Op. 29/III, vc, 1995 Celebratio for solo viola, Op. 29/IV, 2005 Diaphony, Op. 31, organ and orchestra, 1977 Spelt from Sibyl's Leaves, Op. 32, 5 voices, ensemble (3hn, 2 hp, pno, bgtr, 2perc), 1989 Nocturnal, Op. 33, fl, pf, cb, perc, 1991 Sapphic, Op. 35, S, 12 players (fl, ob, bcl, tpt, trb, 2perc, 2 vln, vla, vlc, cb), 1991 Piano Trio - MK Lives!, Op. 36, 1999 (lost) Scardanelli Dreams, Op. 37, MS, pf, 1997-8 Poems of Wallace Stevens IV, Op. 38, MS, vla, pno, 1992 Gymel A, Op. 39a, fl, cl, 1993 Gymel B, Op. 39b, clarinet, cello, 1995 Remembering the butterfly..., Op. 40a, fl, pf, 1998 Silbo, Op. 40b, piccolo and piano, 2009 Piano Concerto, Op. 42, piano and orchestra, 2001-3 String Trio, Op. 43, 2009–10 Canaries, Op. 44, wind quintet, 2004 Sonatina Scherzosa, Op. 45, piano, 2015 DOG/GOD, Op. 48, for voice and tape, 2017

No opus number:

Variations, tape, 1968 Chimaera, dancer, 2 voices, and saxophone quartet, 1979, rev. for dancer, alto, bar., ch., pf., perc., and vc. 1981 (lost) Brahms: Variations Op. 23, arranged for wind band, 1985 MPF – his rebus, for solo piano, 1996 Scherzetti, solo flute, 2020

Discography Poems of Wallace Stevens I / Verse / Cinquepaces / Triad III, Argo LP ZRG 747 (1973) Night Thoughts: Sonatina No. 2: Ennead, Nocturnal, Tesserae F: Domination in Black, Scardanelli Dreams. Métier MSVCD 92046 (2001) The Solo Trumpet: Tesserae D, John Wallace, trumpet, Soma 781 (1980) Jane Manning: Poems of Wallace Stevens II, Jane's Minstrels, NMC D025 (1995) Sonatina in Five Studies, Steven Neugarten, piano, Metier MSV CD92008 (1995) MK lives! [early version of Piano Trio, op.36], Minna Keal 90th Birthday Concert (private release, 1999) Remembering the Butterfly..., op.40, Mark Underwood / Justin Connolly, Piping Hot, Chromattica 0500 (2000) Justin Connolly, Lyrita CD SRCD305 (2008) Music for Strings (plus), Métier MEX 77209 (2025)