President of the Watford Philharmonic Society and former Musical Director and Conductor, Terry Edwards, sadly passed away on 2nd September 2022. Terry was much loved and respected as musical director of the Watford Philharmonic from our 2006/07 season to 2013/14, when ill health led to his retirement. In their upcoming concert at the Bushey Arena, the choir and orchestra of Watford Philharmonic Society will perform Requiem by John Rutter, modern English choral composer, in memory of Terry Edwards. This is the first piece that the Watford Phil performed under the leadership of Terry Edwards in 2006.
In light of the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, the Watford Philharmonic Society have added two orchestral items to the programme to honour Her Majesty: Nimrod, from Elgar’s Enigma Variations and Pavane in F minor by Gabriel Fauré.
WPS enjoyed many memorable performances under Terry Edwards’ direction, most notably Verdi’s Requiem, Elgar’s Dream of Gerontius and Walton’s Belshazzar’s Feast as well as a memorable performance in 2010 of Saint-Saëns’ Piano Concerto no. 2, played by Lara Melda who went on to win the BBC’s Young Musician of the Year competition later that year.
Terry Edwards studied at Trinity College of Music. His first professional post was as Music Teacher at Rickmansworth Grammar School. A man of many talents, he left the teaching profession in 1964, and in that year he represented Great Britain at basketball in the Olympic Games. Since that time, in a distinguished musical career, he earned a reputation as one of Europe’s most experienced Chorus Masters and Choral Conductors. He was the Chorus Master at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden for twelve years until 2004 and prepared the Royal Opera Chorus for 111 operas by 43 composers under the overall directorship of first Bernard Haitink and subsequently Antonio Pappano. In the early 1980’s he formed the professional Choir London Voices.
The Choir of Watford Philharmonic Society will be performing Requiems by John Rutter and Gabriel Fauré, as well as Nimrod from Elgar’s Enigma Variations and Fauré’s Pavane in F Minor on Saturday 29th October at 7:30pm, at the Bushey Arena. Tickets £20 for adults, £5 for under 19s. Tickets can be purchased online at https://watfordphilharmonic.co.uk/wp2019_B/buy-tickets/ or by phone on 07843 192016.
About Watford Philharmonic Society:
Based in Watford, with around 100 members and our own orchestra we are one of Hertfordshire’s largest and oldest amateur choral societies – founded in 1935 by Leslie Regan in association with the great Sir Henry Wood of BBC Proms fame. Our repertoire features works by all the great composers from Bach to Bernstein and includes challenging classical masterpieces alongside Broadway, West End and easy listening favourites.
Musical Director – Michael Cayton. Patron, international baritone – Andrew Shore. Patron, international French Horn player and soloist – David Pyatt.
