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Neville Marriner

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Sir Neville Marriner (1924 to 2016) was an English conductor and violinist. He was born in Lincoln, the son of a carpenter, and played in a jazz band at school with the composer Steve Race. He learned violin and piano from his father. In 1939 he went to the Royal College of Music in London. He served in the army in 1941, but was discharged in 1943 because of kidney problems, and then also studied at the Conservatoire de Paris.

Music and breakthrough

Marriner taught briefly at Eton College and in 1948 became a professor at the Royal College of Music. He played second violin for thirteen years in the Martin String Quartet, and in the Jacobean Ensemble of the harpsichordist Thurston Dart. He then played violin with the Philharmonia Orchestra and the London Symphony Orchestra, where he was principal second violin from 1954 to 1969.

Influence

He founded the Academy of St Martin in the Fields. His collaboration with that orchestra is the most recorded of any orchestra with a conductor. Records such as The Four Seasons from 1970, Serenade for Strings and Concertos For Oboe And Strings stand for the clear, supple sound of the chamber orchestra. Gramophone counts him among the fifty best conductors. In this way he became one of the best-known conductors in the world, because his recordings made Baroque and Classical music accessible to a large audience.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to The Four Seasons in Marriner's recording and notice how clearly the solo violin rises above the strings.

Discography

Studio albums

Categories: Artists