David Lawrence  Conductor

David Lawrence is one of the UK's most versatile choral conductors and his posts currently include those of Associate Conductor of the City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus, Choir Leader of the City of Birmingham Young Voices, Musical Director of The Sage Gateshead's Regional Youth Choir, Quay Voices, and he is a regular guest conductor of the Netherlands Radio Choir. 

David has particular experience in the world of contemporary music, having prepared and conducted first performances of works by a host of composers, including Karlheinz Stockhausen, Per Nørgård, Pierre Boulez, Iannis Xenakis, Mauricio Kagel (second performance), Graham Fitkin, James Wood, Bob Chilcott and Stanley Glasser.  He has recently worked with the London Philharmonic Choir, the Halle Choir, the Philharmonia Chorus and the New London Chamber Choir for whom he is the second conductor for James Wood’s opera Hildegard, which has now been performed at festivals throughout the UK, Belgium and Holland. 

David's work has taken him to Australia, India, Canada, South America and throughout Europe.  He continues to work for the UK's leading choral organisations, is a popular leader of choral workshops and a well known trainer of choral conductors.  David has adjudicated at international choral festivals as well as for the BBC Choir of the Year Competition.  He has conducted live broadcasts for both the BBC and ITV, and recently featured in an hour’s documentary on BBC Television, conducting Tallis’ 40 part motet Spem in Alium sung by over 700 people – almost certainly the largest choir to ever perform this work. 

As Principal Conductor of Young Voices he directs massed voices in an annual series of concerts with some choirs incorporating over 8,000 singers, and consequently holds the Guinness World Record for conducting the UK's largest choir.  Forthcoming engagements this year include education and family concerts with Sinfonia Viva, a major project with the Orchestra of Welsh National Opera, a performance of 'Romany Wood' with the English Symphony Orchestra, a return visit to conduct festivals in Queensland, Australia and his US debut, conducting at a festival in New York, entitled ‘Remembering 9/11’. Amongst other projects in 2008 David will work with the composer and conductor John Adams, preparing the Netherlands Radio Choir for a performance of "The Flowering Tree", and plans to take CBYV to Malawi and South Africa. In 2009 he will be the director of the National Youth Choir of Wales.

June 2007 

393 words, July 2007

Back to Main biographies