Conductors

Uwe Radok - Guest conductor, Bedfordshire Symphony Orchestra

Uwe was born in Germany, and subsequently lived in Australia and the United States. Whilst living in New York, he was a student at the High School of Music and Art, and after service with the U.S. Army, continued his french horn studies with Ranier DeIntinis (New York Philharmonic) before coming to England in 1972.

Since arriving in England, Uwe has played the horn throughout the country with Opera East and BBC Opera, and is well known in Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire, Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire as a player, soloist, and conductor. He was the conductor of the Luton Symphony Orchestra from 1989 – 2006, and the Bedfordshire County 3rd Youth Orchestra for 17 years. He has been the principal horn player in the Quintempo Chamber Ensemble, the Bedfordshire Symphony Orchestra (for nearly 40 years), Bedford Sinfonia, and principal horn with the Stowe Opera Orchestra from its beginning. He also plays on occasion with the Northampton Symphony Orchestra, Hunts Philharmonic, and Hertfordshire Philharmonic, and for several years was the conductor and horn-player at the Yorkshire Pennine Spring Music Festival.

Married to a horn player, he retired after 27 years teaching for the Bedfordshire County Music Service, the last ten years as Head of Brass, and has now increased his playing and conducting commitments as well as arranging music for ensembles (a wind octet arrangement of a youthful piano piece by Malcolm Arnold has recently been published). Uwe also gives private consultation lessons, and is increasingly working in the field of proofreading, having recently qualified as a professional proofreader. Many of his students hold playing positions in orchestras, both professional and amateur.

Ian Smith - Guest conductor, Bedford Sinfonia

Ian is one of the leading conductors in the Bedford and Milton Keynes area.

Educated at York University and Queens’ College Cambridge, he moved to Milton Keynes in 1975 and to Bedford in 1981. Ian is musical director and principal conductor of Bedford Choral Society and the Danesborough Chorus.

His wide-ranging repertoire of choral performances have included Rachmaninov Vespers, Vaughan Williams Sea Symphony and Dona Nobis Pacem, Verdi Requiem, Bach Christmas Oratorio, Mass in B minor, St John and St Matthew Passion, Britten War Requiem, Dankworth The Diamond and the Goose, Elgar The Dream of Gerontius, Vivaldi Gloria, Karl Jenkins Requiem and The Armed Man, Will Todd Mass in Blue, Handel Judas Maccabeus, Saul and Messiah, Monteverdi Vespers, Lauridsen Lux Aeterna and Goodall Eternal Light.

Ian’s varied career includes radio recordings and television appearances for BBC and ITV. Ian was conductor of the Bedfordshire County Youth Second Orchestra for 23 years. He is also a violinist and leader of the Beverley String Quartet.

As a freelance musician working for the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music Ian has delivered courses to teachers in England, Scotland, Hong Kong and Singapore. He was for many years a Trustee of The Wavendon Allmusic Plan. Until his retirement from full-time teaching Ian was Director of Music, Head of Expressive Arts and Assistant Headteacher at Wootton Upper School, near Bedford. He continues to be actively involved in practical music-making throughout the area.

In 2023 Ian was delighted to be awarded an honorary degree of Master of the University from the Open University for his exceptional contribution to education and culture. The nomination was for “the outstanding influence you have had on the musical, artistic and cultural life of Milton Keynes and Bedfordshire, enriching the lives of those with whom you have worked”.

Michael Rose - conductor Emeritus

Michael Rose Studied at The Royal Academy of Music with violin and piano as his instrumental studies. Following some years as a schoolmaster, he became a Music Advisor, firstly with Middlesex County Council, then for two London boroughs.

There followed four years as Assistant-in-Charge of the BBC Training Orchestra in Bristol during which time he trained and conducted the orchestra regularly and broadcast frequently - twice in the 1970 Proms.

In 1972 he moved to Bedfordshire as County Music Inspector until he took early retirement in 1990 in order to devote more time to freelance conducting, composing and examining.

He has continued as Conductor of the County Youth Orchestra, which has toured in Italy, France, Spain, Russia, Hungary, Cyprus and the Czech Republic. In 1990 Michael Rose was awarded the OBE for his services to music.

Bedfordshire Orchestral Society

Contact Info

chair@bedfordsymphony.com

07921 666088

Home Pages

2023/24 Schedule

About Us

https://www.makingmusic.org.uk

Contact Pages