Nigel Boddice Explained

Honorific Suffix:MBE
Birth Date:3 July 1952
Birth Place:Burton upon Trent, England
Occupation:Conductor and instrumentalist
Instrument:Trumpet, cornet
Label:Decca Records, Naxos
Past Member Of:BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Salon Orchestra, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland

Nigel Boddice MBE, hon. ARAM (1952 – 12 October 2022) was a British trumpet player, conductor and band leader who was prominent in the UK brass band scene.[1] He performed and recorded (as both a conductor and an instrumentalist) with many orchestras and bands over his lifetime, including a 20-year tenure as the Section Principal Trumpet of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.

Boddice worked extensively with youth bands, including the WSSO Concert Band and the West Lothian Schools Brass Band, which he conducted to numerous successes at the National Youth Brass Band Championships of Scotland. He received an MBE for his work with young musicians in the 2005 Birthday Honours.

Education and early life

Boddice was born in Burton upon Trent in 1952 and studied at Dovecliff Grammar School secondary school.[2] He joined the National Youth Brass Band of Great Britain as a teen before starting university education.[3] He completed his university education at the Royal Academy of Music (RAM), studying with Alexander Gibson and Jerzy Maksymuick.[4]

Gresley Colliery Brass Band

Boddice began his life with brass bands conducting and playing with the Gresley Colliery Brass Band, where he learned to play trumpet and cornet at the age of 5. He was the youngest member of the band when he joined aged six.[5] In 1960, Boddice participated in the National Brass Band Championships with Gresley, which they won for the first time in their history. This was one of the first experiences Boddice had winning a major competition.[6] When Boddice grew older, Gresley was one of his first experiences with conducting a group, which progressed into his long career with various ensembles.[7] Boddice eventually became principal cornet at Gresley. Even after he left for future studies and work, he still conducted the band on occasion, even becoming the president of the Gresley Youth Band in 2009.[8] [9]

Career

Boddice had a long history of performing both as a conductor and trumpeter. He was the Trumpet Section Principal in the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra (BBCSSO) for 20 years (1975–1995). In other activities with the BBC, Boddice also led the BBC Scottish Brass Ensemble. He was a founding member and conductor of the Salon Orchestra, an offshoot from the BBCSSO to let players perform fun pieces with less stress involved.[10] [11] [12] Boddice worked at the RSAMD (now Royal Conservatoire of Scotland) in Glasgow as a brass lecturer, trumpet teacher and later conductor of their Wind orchestra.[13] He had input into their symphony orchestra program, which is a prestigious ensemble in of itself. He was one of their longest serving members of staff,[14] [15] having worked there for 44 years.[16] In terms of other educational institutions, Boddice also worked with the University of Salford and Royal Northern College of Music as an external examiner, and with the National Youth Orchestras of Scotland as a brass tutor.[17] [18]

He appeared on numerous recordings, including as a soloist on the 1974 Decca LP The Music of Malcolm Arnold with the City of London Brass[19] and, during his time at the BBCSSO, on a Naxos recording of Benjamin Britten's War Requiem.[20] Other notable performances include a series of children's concerts with Northern Ireland's Ulster Orchestra, New Year's Day celebrations with the Scottish Philharmonia, a Reid Concert with The Albany Brass Consort,[21] conducting the National Youth Wind Orchestra of Wales[22] and performing with the Armenian Chamber Orchestra in Yerevan.

From 1984 to 2013, Boddice conducted the West Lothian Schools Brass Band, a group who have been referred to as "the finest youth band in Scotland".[23] Under his leadership, they won the National Youth Brass Band Competition ten times and the Scottish Youth Brass Band Competition three times. In 1986 they won a Gold Award at the Sydney International Music Festival and were named the BBC Radio 2 Brass Band of the Year in 1988.[24] In 1990 they appeared in a BBC Television broadcast segment.[25]

In 1986, Boddice was chosen to take part in a scientific study on the difference between beginner and professional trumpet players. The findings were published in the New Scientist magazine.[26]

Boddice worked as the Chief Conductor of the Royal Norwegian Navy Band (KNMM) for seven years, recording performances of various pieces. During his time in Scandinavia, he conducted three bands (YBS, Manger and Silkeborg) and collaborated with musicians such as Ole Edvard Antonsen, Christian Linberg, Michaela Petri and Solveig Kringlebotn.Boddice conducted the West of Scotland Schools Orchestra Trust (WSSO) concert band up until 2022, retiring in August. The WSSO is an organisation dedicated to giving children the opportunity to play their instruments in an orchestral setting, with concerts scheduled for their yearly residential courses. The WSSO Concert Band sometimes host crossovers and other special events, such as a European trip in 2016[27] and a joint performance with the Lynbrook High School Band (United States) in 2022.[28] Notable venues include the Royal Concert Hall and City Halls, both in Glasgow.[29] Boddice worked with many young musicians in the program.[30] The WSSO Concert Band's last performance of their 2022 series on 31 August[31] was one of the final concerts he conducted before his death.[32]

Personal life

Boddice was the only child of Esme Boddice (died 1998) and Des Boddice (died 18 May 2009, aged 81),[33] president of the Gresley Colliery Brass Band.[34] He had three children including Holly Boddice, a trumpeter who studied at the RCS and now plays as part of the Brass Trio "Granny Green".[35]

Boddice died on 12 October 2022 after a short illness.[36] Following his death, tributes were made to Boddice through social media, including a tweet by the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland:

Awards and honours

See also

References

  1. Book: Newsome, Roy . The modern brass band : from the 1930s to the new millennium . 2006 . Ashgate Pub . 0-7546-0716-X . Aldershot, England . 58422802.
  2. Web site: Nigel Boddice . 13 November 2022 . Facebook.
  3. Web site: 2009 Lower Section National Finals – First Section – runners & riders 4barsrest.com articles . 2022-11-13 . www.4barsrest.com.
  4. Web site: 2005 Brass in Concert Championships – The Adjudicators 4barsrest.com articles . 2022-11-13 . www.4barsrest.com.
  5. Book: Sounding Brass & the Conductor. . Novello . 1980 . 9 . United Kingdom . 20 . English . 0308-5554.
  6. Web site: History – Gresley Colliery Brass Band . 2022-11-13 . www.gresleycollieryband.co.uk.
  7. Web site: Adjudicators for Saturday . 2022-11-13 . Phoenix Brass . en.
  8. Web site: Gresley Old Hall Band and Junior Band 4barsrest.com reviews . 2022-11-13 . 4barsrest.com.
  9. Web site: 3 December 2009 . Salute to Youth at Gresley . 2022-11-13 . 4barsrest . en.
  10. Web site: 7 August 2008 . .::Nigel Boddice – Conductor::. . 2022-11-13 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080807122222/http://www.boddice.fsnet.co.uk/assoc.htm . 7 August 2008 .
  11. Web site: 13 October 2022 . Nigel Boddice MBE . 2022-11-13 . Royal Conservatoire of Scotland . en.
  12. Web site: Fitzpatrick . Tara . 13 October 2022 . Tributes paid as 'highly respected' musician Nigel Boddice MBE dies . 2022-10-22 . STV News . en-GB.
  13. Web site: 24 September 2009 . Boddice takes Scots post . 2022-10-22 . 4barsrest . en.
  14. Web site: Tributes paid to Nigel Boddice MBE, lecturer at The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland . 2022-10-13 . uk.news.yahoo.com . 13 October 2022 . en-GB.
  15. Web site: Nigel Boddice . 2022-10-13 . Royal Conservatoire of Scotland . en.
  16. Web site: Tributes paid to Nigel Boddice MBE, lecturer at The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland . 2022-10-22 . HeraldScotland . 13 October 2022 . en.
  17. Web site: BBANZ Appoints New Executive Officer – PDF Free Download . 2022-11-13 . docplayer.net.
  18. Book: MacLean, Colin . Nurturing talent : the national youth orchestras of scotland, the first 25 years . 2003 . Mainstream . 9781840187465 . Edinburgh . 1311055652.
  19. Web site: Review: LP review: The Music of Malcolm Arnold . 2022-11-12 . 4barsrest . en.
  20. Web site: Britten: War Requiem – 8.553558-59 . 2022-11-13 . Naxos.
  21. Web site: Reid Chamber Concert Reid Concerts . 2022-11-14 . www.reidconcerts.music.ed.ac.uk.
  22. 2007 . Youth Orchestras and Bands . The Rhinegold Guide to Music Education . 4 . 403 . Internet Archive.
  23. Book: Johnson, Eric . The bands play on! . 2003 . Tempus . David Kennedy . 0-7524-3079-3 . Stroud . 52919186.
  24. Web site: Sommerville . Stuart . 2 November 2022 . Tributes to former leader of West Lothian Schools Brass Band . 2022-11-12 . Daily Record . en.
  25. Book: British Music Education Yearbook . Rhinegold Publishing. . 1992 . United Kingdom . 109.
  26. 3 April 1986 . Science proves musical myths wrong . New Scientist . 110 . 1502 . 10 . 10.1016/s0262-4079(08)60880-5 . 0262-4079.
  27. Web site: admin . European Tours 2016 . 2022-11-14 . WSSO West of Scotland Schools Orchestra Trust . en.
  28. Web site: WSSO calendar of events, session 2022 . 14 November 2022.
  29. Web site: admin . Concert Band . 2022-10-22 . WSSO West of Scotland Schools Orchestra Trust . en.
  30. Web site: admin . Nigel Boddice . 2022-10-13 . WSSO West of Scotland Schools Orchestra Trust . en.
  31. Web site: Rehearsals underway at City Halls for our Showcase tonight . 2022-10-22 . Twitter . en.
  32. Web site: The WSSO community is saddened to learn that Nigel Boddice MBE has passed away after a short illness . 2022-10-22 . Twitter . en.
  33. Web site: DES BODDICE obituary . 2022-11-14 . funeral-notices.co.uk . en.
  34. Web site: 13 October 2009 . Fitting tribute . 2022-11-13 . 4barsrest . en.
  35. Web site: Dementia Friendly Event – Granny Green . 2022-11-13 . Data Thistle . en-GB.
  36. Web site: 13 October 2022 . Death of Nigel Boddice MBE . 2022-10-13 . 4barsrest . en.
  37. Web site: Metason . Nigel Boddice . 2022-11-15 . ArtistInfo . EN.
  38. Web site: Nigel Boddice – Royal Conservatoire of Scotland research and professional practice gateway . 2022-10-22 . pure.rcs.ac.uk . en.
  39. Web site: The Musician's Company . 29 January 2020 . The Mortimer Medal . 2022-10-22 . Music Mark . en-GB.
  40. Book: Cook, Chris . The Guinness book of winners and champions . 1979 . Guinness Superlatives . Peter Matthews . 0-85112-201-9 . Enfield . 60046719.
  41. Book: Cook, Chris . The Guinness book of winners and champions . 1981 . Guinness Superlatives . Anne Marshall, Peter Matthews, Norris McWhirter . 0-85112-218-3 . 2 . Enfield, Middlesex . 8477402.
  42. Web site: BBC Radio Scotland – Classics Unwrapped, Live in session: Scotland's Championship-winning brass band, The Cooperative Funeralcare Band in Session – The Cooperative Funeralcare Band in Session . 2022-11-12 . BBC . en-GB.
  43. Web site: Co-op ready to hit the airwaves . 2022-11-14 . Scottish Brass Band Association.

External links

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Nigel Boddice".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.