Haydn Wood

From Wind Repertory Project
Haydn Wood

Biography

Haydn Wood (25 March 1882, Slaithwaite, UK – 11 March 1959, London, UK) was a British composer and violinist. At the age of two Wood and his family moved to the Isle of Man, a self-governing Crown dependency, located in the Irish Sea at the geographical center of the British Isles. The island was often a source of inspiration for the composer. At the age of 15 he studied the violin with Enrique Fernandez Arbos and composition with Charles Villiers Stanford at the Royal College of Music.

In 1909, he married soprano Dorothy Court whom he had met while they were both students at the Royal College of Music, and from 1913 to 1926 he toured extensively with her. Their act consisted of songs and ballads of his own composition, and well loved violin gems. Together with their pianist, he accompanied her on his violin while she was singing. He also gained considerable success from his works, particularly his "light music" and his songs.

Occasionally, Wood would take to the podium, usually to direct his own compositions. He was given his own program by the BBC on the occasion of his 70th birthday, and starting in 1939 he served as a Director of the Performing Rights Society. His final years were spent in relative peace and quiet, and he eventually died in a London nursing-home two weeks before his 77th birthday.


Works for Winds


Resources

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