Bethan Morgan-Williams

Bethan Morgan-Williams is a composer who writes quirky, rhythmically intricate music, finding motivation in the apogee of musical performance. Described as ‘marvellously oblique and obscure’ (5against4) while being ‘rooted in something ancient and folky’ (The Telegraph), Bethan’s music plays with expectation and variance. Ongoing preoccupations include the passing of time, the link between perception and memory, the interplay between systems and intuition, and the effects of revisiting material interactions on the substructure of ‘finished’ pieces. Bethan enjoys the opportunity to work closely with players and considers collaboration a key part of her practice. Her music has been commissioned and/or performed by numerous established soloists including Carl Rosman (clarinet), Antoine Tamestit (viola), Colin Currie (percussion), Ben Goldscheider (horn) and Jennifer Johnston (mezzo); and internationally acclaimed ensembles such as Ensemble Musikfabrik, Psappha, Uproar Ensemble, New European Ensemble, Ligeti Quartet, Ensemble 10/10 and the London Symphony Orchestra, with broadcasts on WDR, S4C, BBC Radio 3, Hometown Radio (KY) and the Dutch radio society Omroep Max.

Bethan has already accrued a significant number of awards, including a Leverhulme Scholarship (2018–19), the Susan Bradshaw Composer Prize (2017–18), the Christopher Brooks Composition Prize (Young Composer in Residence with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic) (2015–17), and the LSO Panufnik Scheme (2015-16). She was shortlisted for ISCM World Music Days (2019, 2020), a Paul Hamlyn Award (2017), and Manchester Jazz Festival’s Irwin Mitchell Prize (2014). Upcoming events include the UK premiere of Gêmdisyn, for solo E flat clarinet, by Carl Rosman in February; and a performance of Gêmdis, for solo E flat clarinet and ensemble, by Riot Ensemble in March.

Biography

Bethan Morgan-Williams is a composer who writes quirky, rhythmically intricate music, finding motivation in the apogee of musical performance. Described as ‘marvellously oblique and obscure’ (5against4) while being ‘rooted in something ancient and folky’ (The Telegraph), Bethan’s music plays with expectation and variance. Ongoing preoccupations include the passing of time, the link between perception and memory, the interplay between systems and intuition, and the effects of revisiting material interactions on the substructure of ‘finished’ pieces. Bethan enjoys the opportunity to work closely with players and considers collaboration a key part of her practice. Her music has been commissioned and/or performed by numerous established soloists including Carl Rosman (clarinet), Antoine Tamestit (viola), Colin Currie (percussion), Ben Goldscheider (horn) and Jennifer Johnston (mezzo); and internationally acclaimed ensembles such as Ensemble Musikfabrik, Psappha, Uproar Ensemble, New European Ensemble, Ligeti Quartet, Ensemble 10/10 and the London Symphony Orchestra, with broadcasts on WDR, S4C, BBC Radio 3, Hometown Radio (KY) and the Dutch radio society Omroep Max.

Bethan has already accrued a significant number of awards, including a Leverhulme Scholarship (2018–19), the Susan Bradshaw Composer Prize (2017–18), the Christopher Brooks Composition Prize (Young Composer in Residence with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic) (2015–17), and the LSO Panufnik Scheme (2015-16). She was shortlisted for ISCM World Music Days (2019, 2020), a Paul Hamlyn Award (2017), and Manchester Jazz Festival’s Irwin Mitchell Prize (2014). Upcoming events include the UK premiere of Gêmdisyn, for solo E flat clarinet, by Carl Rosman in February; and a performance of Gêmdis, for solo E flat clarinet and ensemble, by Riot Ensemble in March.

Compilations with this composer

Compilations
CBSO Sounds New

Sounds New: 20 New Works Celebrating 100 Years of CBSO

NMC Recordings

20 short commissions from rising-star composers performed by The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra form an impressive showcase of the range and breadth of contemporary orchestral writing happening in the UK today

More info

External Links

Music Map

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