I have had the honour of re-constructing this very fine piece by American composer William Grant Still (1895-1678) for soprano Leah Hawkins and the New Century Chamber Orchestra of San Francisco directed by Daniel Hope for a concert on January 17th 2022.
I conducted the Urban Soul Orchestra for this and it was, as always, a terrific night. The energy on the stage is breathtaking.
I’m very excited to be going back to Air Studios in November with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra to record two new albums of music by Oliver Davis, having already conducted his albums Flight, Liberty, Dance, and Arcadia. Here below is a picture from a previous recording session at Abbey Road with Oliver and Kerenza Peacock in the middle and myself on the right.
The new album from Daniel Hope that features several of my arrangements.
Misa Criolla by Ramirez arranged for solo violin, choir, percussion and strings.
Danny Boy arranged for solo violin and strings.
Dream a Little Dream arranged for violin, harp, piano and strings
Amazing Grace arranged for solo violin, voice, harp piano and strings
Nimrod by Elgar arranged for violin and male vocal group Amarcord.
Some movements in the right direction now. The concert I was supposed to conduct for Sir Bryn Terfel at the Royal Albert Hall in April 2020 has now finally been rescheduled for April 6th 2022. Very much looking forward to that.
Daniel Hope and the Zurich Chamber Orchestra play four Christmas songs that I arranged for Solo Violin and Strings released by Deutsche Grammophon.
From Daniel: Four of the most beautiful Christmas songs ever written, in brand new arrangements by Paul Bateman, one of the great arrangers of our time. I’m joined by our Zürcher Kammerorchester on a new digital EP (Extended Play).
I recently discovered an overture by my maternal grandfather Herbert T Child (1894-1963). Note his beautifully hand written score in ink which contained light pencil markings to suggest which instruments of the orchestra should be used. He clearly intended to orchestrate it and as far as we know he never did. I have therefore done so. It can be heard on my YouTube channel (Paul Bateman channel) or copy this link – https://youtu.be/MoDws6-Rh8U
Here below are some pictures of him and the title page of the original ink score. I was nine when he died but remember sitting next to him in an orchestra pit when he conducted an operetta. It’s nice to know where the musical genes came from!
A Christmas EP from Fred Hall, Costa Rican tenor with the National Symphony Orchestra. Conducted and arranged by yours truly.
10 years ago I conducted a new recording of John Jeffreys’ Violin Concerto (1951) with Zsolt-Tihamér Visontay and the Philharmonia Orchestra but the composer died two weeks before the recording and it was never released. It is now on YouTube and it includes a short video introduction by myself. It’s a very profoundly moving and beautiful piece. Please click this link: https://youtu.be/XDtel61odBw
During lockdown Daniel Hope has so far presented 60 episodes of [email protected], now [email protected] On Tour for the ARTE Channel. He regularly commissions new arrangements plus a reduction of The Carnival of the Animals for five players for social distancing. He is also recording a new album with the Zurich Chamber Orchestra that features many of my arrangements.
November 2020 – lockdown 2. [email protected] returned with a new series. “The Next Generation”. Arrangements for this series:
Some Enchanted Evening, You’ll Never Walk Alone, Edelweiss, It Might As Well Be Spring, A Fellow Needs a Girl
For Daniel with Max Mutzke and Marialy Pacheco – You, Unsere Nacht and Gitanerias and for the Airlettes, Stille Nacht and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.
With Tam Ward – Fly Me To The Moon, My Way, It Was A Very Good Year and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.
With Thomas Hampson – Panis Angelicus and White Christmas.
With the New Century Chamber Orchestra in San Francisco – Scène d’Amour from Vertigo (Bernard Herrmann), I Left My Heart in San Francisco. Reductions from full strings to Quintet: Five Copland Songs, Dvorak – Humoreske, Elgar – Salut d’Amour, Weill – September Song.
French Songs – La Mer, Chanson l’Auvergnat and Göttingen.
New arrangement of Elgar’s Nimrod for Daniel to record with Amarcord.
Christmas Songs fro violin and string quintet – Adeste Fideles, White Christmas, Maybe This Christmas, A Child is Born, Chestnuts Roasting.
For series – [email protected]:
Austria – Wien di Stadt meiner Traüme
Bulgaria – folk song, Hubava si maya goro
Cyprus – Τέσσερα και τέσσερα, Τηλλυρκώτισσα, Το γιασεμί στην πόρτα σου, Ψηντρή βασιλικιά μου
Czech Republik – Dvorak Zigeunermelodien 3&4, Peter Eben – from Šestero Piesní Milostnych – Noci milá, Summer is come & Unter dem Linden.
France – La Vie en Rose
Greece – My Red Apple
Italy – Addio mio dolce amor, L’invito, La Ricordanza
Latvia – Fisches Grün, Put Vëjini
Malta – Il-Kebbies tal-Fanali
Portugal – Sabor a Norte, Maria Lisboa, Naufragio, Página esquesida
Slovakia – Cervene jablicko, Dobru noc, Żeby ja bedela, Paslo dievca pavy
