Judith Weir
Biography:
Judith Weir (b 1954 to Scottish parents in Cambridge, England) studied composition with John Tavener, Robin Holloway and Gunther Schuller. On leaving Cambridge University in 1976 she taught in England and Scotland, and in the mid-1990s became Associate Composer with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, and Artistic Director of Spitalfields Festival. She was a Visiting Professor at Princeton (2001) Harvard (2004) and Cardiff (2006-13) and in 2014 was appointed Master of the Queen’s Music. Since Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II died in September 2022, Weir is now Master of The King's Music. From 2015 to 2019 she was Associate Composer to the BBC Singers. Weir was awarded a Damehood in the 2024 New Year Honours list for her services to music.
She is the composer of several operas (written for Kent Opera, Scottish Opera, ENO and Bregenz) which have been widely performed. She has written orchestral music for the BBC Symphony, Boston Symphony and Minnesota Orchestras. Much of her music has been recorded, and is available on the NMC, Delphian and Signum labels. She blogs about her cultural experiences at www.judithweir.com.
Agent:
Publisher:
Wise Music
Suggested repertoire:
On Buying a Horse 2’ medium voice and piano Scotch Minstrelsy 13’ tenor [soprano] and piano
A Spanish Liederbooklet 8’ soprano and piano
Standchen 3’ baritone and piano
Songs from the Exotic 10’ low voice and piano
The Voice of Desire 12’ mezzo-soprano and piano
Blackbirds and Thrushes 3’ bass baritone and piano
Sonnet 116 3’ baritone and piano
The Sleeping-Mat ballad 4’ mezzo-soprano and piano
On White Meadows 4’ mezzo-soprano and piano