David Wordsworth appointed as new Director of the John Ireland Charitable Trust
Music Director, conductor and promoter, David Wordsworth, has been appointed Director of the John Ireland Charitable Trust with immediate effect. Wordsworth succeeds Bruce Phillips, who has been Director of the Trust for over a decade. The Trust was formed in 1968 by Norah Kirby, Ireland’s companion, secretary and house-keeper, for the purpose of supporting performances, publication and recordings of the composer’s music.
David Wordsworth has worked as a conductor, teacher, pianist, publisher, writer on music and as a promoter of contemporary music. Amongst many other responsibilities, David has been Music Director of the London-based Addison Singers for over twenty years and has in addition conducted choirs of all kinds in many parts of the world.
Wordsworth was Artistic Director of the 5-day Festival ‘John Ireland in Chelsea’, where Ireland was organist, which marked the 50th anniversary of the composer’s death and was mounted by the Trust in 2012. The Festival programme included many of Ireland’s major works, alongside pieces by his pupils Benjamin Britten, Alan Bush, Geoffrey Bush, Richard Arnell, E J Moeran and Helen Perkin, as well as his teacher Charles Villiers Stanford.
David Wordsworth is currently curating a year-long festival of American music being held at St John’s Smith Square, London, in which he will conduct a number of iconic American works including Bernstein’s ‘Chichester Psalms’. Recent and forthcoming projects include a performances of Haydn’s ‘Nelson Mass’, Orff’s ‘Carmina Burana’, fund-raising ‘Come and Sing’ concerts, and a rare performance of the Mozart ‘Requiem’ with the accompaniment transcribed by Czerny for piano duet. Other highlights include a trip to Austria with his own group, The Addison Singers, and a celebration of Howard Skempton’s 70th birthday at King’s Place. In 2018 he will become Associate Artistic Director of the Brandenburg Choral Festival of London, and make his debut at the world-renowned Three Choirs Festival. David Wordsworth’s world premiere recording of Sir Lennox Berkeley’s ‘Stabat Mater’ on Delphian Records was released last year to considerable critical acclaim and was nominated for a Gramophone Award.