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Composer

 

W.M. Kendall was a classical music composer who was born on May 12, 1929, in London, England. He was the son of a music teacher and grew up in a musical family. His father was a pianist and his mother was a singer, and they both encouraged Kendall to pursue a career in music. Kendall began his musical education at an early age, studying piano and composition with his father. He later attended the Royal Academy of Music in London, where he studied composition with Alan Bush and piano with Harold Craxton. He also studied conducting with Sir Adrian Boult and Sir John Barbirolli. Kendall's early compositions were influenced by the music of Arnold Schoenberg and the Second Viennese School. He was also interested in the music of Igor Stravinsky and Béla Bartók. His early works were characterized by their use of atonality and complex rhythms. In the 1950s, Kendall began to experiment with serialism, a technique that uses a series of pitches to create a musical composition. He also began to incorporate elements of jazz and popular music into his compositions. His works from this period include the Piano Sonata No. 1 (1952) and the String Quartet No. 1 (1954). In the 1960s, Kendall's music became more tonal and melodic. He began to use traditional forms, such as the sonata and the symphony, in his compositions. His works from this period include the Symphony No. 1 (1960) and the Piano Concerto No. 1 (1965). Kendall's music continued to evolve throughout the 1970s and 1980s. He began to incorporate electronic music into his compositions, and he also experimented with aleatoric music, which is music that is partially or wholly left to chance. His works from this period include the Electronic Symphony (1972) and the Aleatoric String Quartet (1980). Kendall's music was performed by many of the leading orchestras and ensembles of his time, including the London Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, and the Arditti Quartet. He also taught composition at the Royal Academy of Music and the University of London. Kendall's most famous work is his Symphony No. 2, which was composed in 1975. The symphony is a tribute to the victims of the Holocaust, and it is a powerful and emotional work that has been performed by many of the world's leading orchestras. The symphony is characterized by its use of Jewish melodies and its powerful orchestration. Kendall's other notable works include the Piano Concerto No. 2 (1978), the String Quartet No. 2 (1985), and the opera The Trial of Mary Dugan (1990). The opera is based on the true story of a woman who was wrongly accused of murder in the 1920s. Kendall continued to compose music until his death on June 3, 1999, at the age of 70. He was a prolific composer who wrote over 100 works in a variety of genres, including orchestral music, chamber music, and opera. His music is characterized by its emotional depth, its use of traditional forms, and its incorporation of diverse musical influences. Kendall was a major figure in the world of classical music, and his music continues to be performed and admired by musicians and audiences around the world.

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