Stephen Bryant

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As leader of the BBC Symphony Orchestra I am aware that some concert goers, music students and enthusiastic listeners of Radio 3 may know my name and vaguely recognise my face. I’ve always been quite a private person, unused to sharing information and talking about my day to day work - also, being a musician I spend much of my time practising in ‘voluntary’ solitary confinement and don‘t get out much! Over the last couple of years I’ve had a number of enquiries asking if I have a website - so, with some trepidation that this may be a slightly egotistical enterprise and with thanks to Internet Dreams Ltd for their expertise and patience, and to Ian Bond for some great photos, here it is! Hopefully this is a website not only for classical musicians but also a fun way to share information and give you a little insight into my life.

If you’ve enjoyed looking at the site or if you have an enquiry about my leading, solo or teaching work please feel free to contact me via the contact page - I look forward to hearing from you!

This year the 116th Prom season gets under way on the 16th July and kicks off with Mahler’s mighty 8th Symphony or ‘Symphony of a Thousand’ with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and its Chief Conductor,Jiri Belohlavek and a raft of soloists and choirs!

Even though I’ve taken part in about 140 Proms (to date!) I still get excited being part of this great annual event. As any Promenader worth his salt knows, the Proms are the world’s biggest music festival and were started back in 1895 by Henry Wood at the Queen’s Hall and then moved to the Royal Albert Hall in 1941 after the Queen’s Hall was damaged in an air raid. Although,acoustically speaking, not always the easiest hall in which to play, the Albert Hall is an aesthetically beautiful building steeped in tradition and atmosphere.

The Proms attract a huge selection of really top notch conductors and soloists but, for me, the best thing about the concerts is the audience. Prom audiences and the famous Promenaders are knowledgeable, informed, open minded and enthusiastic and since I’ve been doing the Proms for a long time now, I recognise many friendly faces each year!

Of course the BBC Symphony Orchestra is proud to play a major role in the Proms, including opening and closing the season with the First and Last Nights. This year I’ve tried to spread my share of the Proms around a much needed holiday! So here are the Proms I’m doing this summer!

Prom 31 August 8th 2010

Sir Andrew Davis (Conductor)  Louis Lortie (Piano)

Messiaen: ‘Un Sourire’-  Mozart: Piano Concerto No.17 in G, K.453-  Parry: ‘Elegy for Brahms’-   Brahms: Symphony No.4 in E Minor. Live Radio 3

I always enjoy working with Andrew-our Conductor Laureate and someone who will always hold a special place in the Orchestra’s affections for the time he was here as our Chief Conductor.He returns for a varied programme including Brahms’ 4th Symphony, a piece the BBC Symphony has performed with him many times. 

Prom 36 August 12th 2010

Lionel Bringuier (Conductor)  Nelson Friere (Piano)

Chopin: Piano Concerto No.2 in F Minor Op.21-  Roussel: Symphony No.3-  Ravel: Daphnis and Chloe Suite No.2.  Live Radio 3/Arte TV,France

Prom 42 August 17th 2010

Edward Gardner (Conductor)  Alina Ibragimova (Violin)

Britten: ‘Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes’-  Watkins: Violin Concerto-  Shostakovich: Symphony No.5 in D Minor. Live Radio 3/BBC 4

Ed and the orchestra have a very good relationship-we have just recorded a disc of Lutoslawski with him and are due to make a disc of Britten with him in the Autumn.I’m looking forward particularly to the Shostakovich 5th Symphony which is a tremendous work!

Prom 50 August 22nd 2010

David Robertson (Conductor)  Richard Goode (Piano)

Bartok: Piano Concerto No 3- Bartok: Cantata Profana- Haydn: Symphony No.102 in Bb. Live Radio 3

This is the first of two Proms with our Principal Guest Conductor,David Robertson.

Prom 54 August 26th 2010

David Robertson (Conductor) Gil Shaham (Violin)

Turnage: ‘Hammered Out’- Barber: Violin Concerto Op.14- Sibelius: Symphony No.2 in D. Live Radio 3/BBC4

This is a programme with a beautiful Violin Concerto played by the brilliant violinist,Gil Shaham and a great Symphony.The New York Times described David Robertson’s 2009 Carnegie Hall performance of Sibelius’s triumphant 5th Symphony as ‘the most transparent and riveting account of Sibelius’s Fifth Symphony in memory’

Prom 76 September 11th Last Night of the Proms

Jiri Belohlavek (Conductor) Maxim Rysanov (Viola) Renee Fleming (Soprano) Live Radio 3/BBC1 and 2

Its finally here! A smorgasbord of various repertoire and a Viola soloist! Jiri,our Chief Conductor will be conducting festivities with the usual list of suspects!Sit back and enjoy…

 Wayne McGrath is a name known to most musicians.Officially the oldest leader ever (about 36) of the Wanganui Schools Symphony Orchestra in New Zealand,his name is a byword for excellence in the Orchestral world.Some months ago,I was thrilled to receive a message from him with some helpful advice .Then last week (despite changing my address) I received another message.So,now I’ve given up and I’m giving him his own column.

Wayne  McGrath Writes (March 2010)

G’day mate from Wayne,leader of the Wanganui Schools Symphony Orchestra New Zealand!Loved the site mate and some really great tips for leading-especially the “day of the concert” stuff!Like ya good self,I’m a bit of a perfectionist so I always cut right back on the grog for the concert day.Just a couple for medicinal purposes if ya know what I mean.You missed out on the best thing about leading, mate-the girls.I’ve had a couple trying to break my Leader’s Room door.I always let them out in the end though.Cheers Wayne

(June 2010)

G’day again mate from Wayne, now officially the oldest ever leader of the Wanganui Schools Symphony Orchestra New Zealand! I reckon that sounds better than telling everyone I’ve got to resit me final exams for the 3rd year running! Anyways, mate, great to be back on the site.

I’m facing a minor disciplinary at the moment for breaking a string during a solo. Admittedly it wasn’t my string. Or my solo either. My no.2 Dave Dooley was playing way too loud in the Grieg Piano slow movement so I slipped his A string with me flicky. Apparently this is ‘unacceptable behaviour in a concert’. I tell you what though mate, the punters loved it. Dave is such a dag! And he’s always trying to upstage me. When we do the semiquavers in Tchaik 6 he always tries to play them louder than me. He’s got no class. I say “Dave, you’re missing the point mate. It’s not how loud you play them, but how fast”. And I win hands down on that one every time. Seriously though mate, what can I do to handle this guy in a non physical way? Cheers Wayne

In 2009, I recorded the Khachaturian Violin Concerto with Martyn Brabbins and the BBC Symphony Orchestra for broadcast on Radio 3.There is of course,already an excellent cadenza by David Oistrakh for this piece but I  fancied composing one myself,so here it is!

 The Violin Concerto is inspired by Rilke’s ‘Sonnets to Orpheus’ and is a great example of the sophisticated and completely unique soundscape that Detlev creates in his music. I have given a few premieres before, most notably the British Premiere of Korngold’s Violin Concerto and the world premiere of Elgar’s ‘Etude Characteristiques’. This, for me,will be just as exciting!

 批判的思考

From the Strad Magazine 

‘…Stephen Bryant was a splendid soloist with a beautifully integrated tone,impeccable intonation and sovereign technique….’

www.classicalsource.com

‘…..when she needed to Schwanewilms projected beautifully, but at all times she was at one with the dynamics of the orchestra; not to mention Stephen Bryant’s exquisite violin solo in the third Song….’

 www.musicomh.com

‘…..giving an arrestingly simple, sincere delivery that was all the more affecting for it. Playing to match was crowned by a beautifully poised solo by leader Stephen Bryant in “Beim Schlafengehen”. Altogether, this was the finest performance of the work I’ve heard in a good number of years…..’

 www.musicweb-international.com

‘…..something which inspired leader Stephen Bryant to a beautifully tender solo (the dovetail with the voice at the solo’s conclusion was perfect)…..’

‘…..for Strauss’ Till Eulenspiegel everyone seemed on their toes for this perilous but playful piece. Again, Stephen Bryant’s solo violin was notable…..’

 www.classicalsource.com

‘…..the lighter passages fared very well despite the hall’s acoustic, whith some impressive playing from leader, Stephen Bryant….’

 www.musicalcriticism.com

‘…..The Benedictus was gorgeously pastoral, with a deeply expressive, easily and confidently enunciated ritornello underpinning by the first violinist, Stephen Bryant. The sensuousness of this interlude was further increased by Christine Brewer…..’

 www.classicalsource.com

‘….Stephen Bryant’s wonderful violin solos were another highpoint….’

 www.catholicherald.co.uk

‘….The other ingredient of a great Missa Solemnis is a violin soloist who can float above and through the orchestra in the Benedictus, playing tricky arpeggios while still conveying the peace of the Holy Spirit. Many fine recordings of the mass come to grief at this point but the orchestra’s leader, Stephen Bryant, achieved just the right balance of brilliance and beneficence….’

 www.musicomh.com

‘….mention should also be made of leader Stephen Bryant’s lovely violin solo in the Benedictus….’

From the Mail on Sunday David Mellor writes:

‘……. Job is a tricky work that some consider a masterpiece. There are certainly beautiful moments, as at the beginning of Job’s Dance or the end of the Dance of the Three Messengers. There’s also a reminder of the Lark Ascending in the radiant violin solo in Elihu’s Dance, dispatched with great artistry by the orchestra’s leader, Stephen Bryant….’

 www.independent.co.uk

‘….But, of course, no one does the peace which passeth all understanding quite like Vaughan Williams, and leader Stephen Bryant’s beautiful solo in the starlit nocturne of ‘Elihu’s Dance of Youth and Beauty’ was like a second Lark Ascending, never to return to earth….’

 www.classicalsource.com

‘….Leader Stephen Bryant was admirable in ‘Elihu’s Dance of Youth and Beuaty’, the evening’s most overt incursion onto ‘Lark Ascending’ territory….’

 www.classicalsource.com

‘….Stephen Bryant’s violin solo was winningly poised….’

 www.classicalsource.com

‘….The BBCSO’s leader Stephen Bryant had numerous solos in all these works, including the tone’higher contribution (on a second violin) for Mahler’s macabre second movement and he acquitted himself admirably….’

 www.musicweb-international.com

‘….there was exquisite playing particularly from the strings. Indeed, Stephen Bryant’s violin solo was poignantly expressive….’

Leonard Slatkin writes: www.classicalsource.com

‘….Like the other two works on the program, this one exploits the orchestral resource to the max and is a fine showcase for the BBCSO’s leader, Stephen Bryant, as there is an extended cadenza for solo violin….’

 www.musicomh.com

‘….Concertmaster Stephen Bryant’s solo violin in the second ritornello showed that the BBCSO have a fine replacement for the well loved Michael Davis…..’

 www.guardian.co.uk

‘….and the martial triumphalism of the finale was extinguished by the coda with its reminiscences of the bells of Big Ben and the eerie calm of Stephen Bryant’s violin solo….’

 www.musicweb-intermational.com

‘….the leader, Stephen Bryant, played the various solos enchantingly….’

 www.independent.co.uk

‘…..so much lush effusion, with sumptuous string writing, sparkling solo violin (Stephen Bryant as the mermaid, of course,) …..’

 www.independent.co.uk

‘….before the main protagonist enters in the guise of a fiendishly difficult fiddle solo (boldly surmounted by Stephen Bryant)….’

BBC交響楽団の極東ツアー2010年5月

From the 10th to 27th May the BBCSO embarks upon it’s Far East Tour of 2010 with our principal conductor Jiri Belohlavek. We visit Tokyo (11th - 13th May), Seoul (13th - 17th May), Shanghai (17th - 20th May), Beijing (20th - 21st May), Taipei (21st - 22nd May), Kaohsiung (22nd - 23rd May), Taipei  (23rd - 24th May), Guangzhon (24th - 26th May) and then back home and a familiar bed! Programmes include Dvorak 9, Elgar ‘In the South’, Prokofiev 5, Brahms 4 and Tippett’s ‘Fantasia Concertante on a theme of Corelli’ - the Tippett is a great piece scored for 1st and 2nd solo violin and solo ‘cello (myself, Amyn Merchant and Graham Bradshaw) and String Orchestra. I’m really looking forward to playing that. Incidentally, we will also play the Tippett on the 8th May (7.30pm) at the Barbican - this concert also includes Martinu’s 6th Symphony and the Schumann Piano Concerto. The other programme I’m particularly looking forward to is a chamber music concert in Seoul at the Hoam Art Hall on the 14th of May. It is the same group of BBCSO players that gave the concert for OCD Action in 2009 (reported elsewhere in the blog). We will be playing Webern Rondo for String Quartet, Mendelssohn Piano Trio in D minor and Schumann Piano Quintet. This concert will be broadcast on Radio 3 so if you can’t make it out to Seoul (!) I hope you catch it on the radio (broadcast times to follow on this site).

 2009年11月28日 - 室内楽コンサートOCDの行動の援助

This concert was held at St Edward the Confessor Church, Golders Green and was an opportunity for me to play with friends from the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Liz Burley, piano, Frances Dewar, violin, Mary Whittle, viola and Mark Sheridan, ‘cello made up our quintet and the programme was a nice one, I think - with Schubert’s Adagio and Rondo for piano quartet, Mendelssohn’s piano trio in D minor, and Dvorak’s piano quintet in A major. There was a big and appreciative audience there and a decent sum was raised for OCD Action and the Alzheimer’s Society. OCD Action is the largest OCD charity in the UK and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is a subject close to my heart as I was diagnosed with severe OCD in 2006 having lived with it for as long as I can remember. Like a lot of mental illness, OCD seems to either be misunderstood or stigmatised but it is in the World Health Organisation’s list of the ten most debilitating illnesses and many people that suffer from it are struggling to cope.

I’m hoping to do more concerts in the future and raise more money for OCD Action. If you would like to look at OCD Action’s website click on this link www.ocdaction.org.uk/

ブザンソン2009年9月

This September the Orchestra travelled to Besancon in France for the International Conducting Competition - lasting 8 days this competition attracted a lot of press interest with the eventual winner conducting the first half of a concert featuring the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Besancon is a pretty town with houses of brown stone and red roofs - and with the weather on the whole being quite good and the food being very good, we spent a pleasant week there - it being a rare opportunity to stay in one place for a  length of time. There was a lot of media interest in this competition and I must have done at least half a dozen interviews by the end of the week! Below are some excerpts from local newspaper coverage and also  an interview I gave to Arte TV.

‘Brillant BBC Symphony orchestra’

Musique a programme avec Jiri Belohlavec a la baguette. De l’Italie d’Elgar a la Pastorale de Beethoven.

(photo)

‘L’orchestre de la BBC entre en scene’

‘…..Hier soir encore, la moitie des candidats encore en lice devait tirer sa reverence. Il en est meme un qui a insiste apres du photographe pour qu’il immortalise sa poignee de mains avec le premier violon du BBC Symphony orchestra. Une photo souvenir pour temoigner qu’il a dirige une formation de prestige….’

(photo)

From: Le Parisien.fr

‘Le Concours de jeunes chefs d’orchestre de Besancon, un ‘veritable tremplin”  de Angela Schnaebele (AFP) - 17 Sept 2009

‘..The BBC Symphony Orchestra is very good training, very flexible. This is an incredible experience that will serve me in my work’ enthuses Japanese candidate Kazuki Yamada, who returns to contest the competition for a second time. Three candidates from Japan had been selected for the competition in Besancon - all are present for the semi finals. ‘A lot of Japanese conductors seem to have high sensitivity and great technical precision’ analyses Stephen Bryant, first violinist of the BBC Symphony Orchestra…..’

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hd2fn0QFcE7Cu4YBcjPfXZ15s-_w

ハリウッドとスティーブンブライアント

Tristan and Isolde Fantasy - by Franz Waxman

Franz Waxman - The Golden Age of Hollywood

Stephen Bryant - violin/Simon Mulligan - piano/Leonard Slatkin - conductor/BBC Symphony Orchestra

With kind permission of the BBC