Musical Director

Ralph Woodward - Conductor

Ralph Woodward was born and educated in Durham. He spent four years as Organ Scholar at Queens’ College, Cambridge. While there, he conducted the Chapel Choir’s first two CDs and gave world premieres of numerous works. These included three pieces by Stanford, one of which he edited for publication.

Now a freelance conductor and keyboard player, Ralph has written often on the music of Benjamin Britten, and was described by the Independent on Sunday as a ‘leading authority’ on the composer. He has a wide performing repertoire, particular specialisms being the music of Bach and Mozart, the French Baroque and Scandinavian music.

Ralph is Musical Director of the Fairhaven Singers, Full Score, the Britten-Pears Chamber Choir (based at Snape Maltings) and the Northumbrian Recorder and Viol School. He has worked in over 20 countries, and has conducted the London Mozart Players, Cambridge Baroque Camerata, the Tallis Chamber Orchestra and Ely Sinfonia. He carries out a wide range of editorial tasks for Oxford University Press, with particular involvement in the William Walton Edition, and is much in demand as a leader of choral workshops.

Past projects have included work with Vladimir Ashkenazy, Christopher Hogwood, Emma Kirkby and Michael Chance. Recent work has taken him to the Mosel Valley for Bach and wine-tastings with a choir, and to Durham with James Bowman. Forthcoming engagements include conducting in Worcestershire, Sorrento and Austria.

www.ralphwoodward.net