550 WORD BIOGRAPHY
Roderick Elms was born in Ilford and studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London and he appears in concerts, recordings and broadcasts with most of Britain's major orchestras, both as a principal keyboard player and as a soloist. He has broadcast regularly for the BBC for more than thirty years on Radio 3 as well as for Radio 2's Friday Night is Music Night, and he has made many solo recordings with the Royal Philharmonic, London Philharmonic, London Symphony and BBC Concert Orchestras. He also works as a chamber player and has given many broadcasts in this capacity. For several years he was London pianist to the eminent cellist Mstislav Rostropovich. Foreign tours have taken him round most of Europe as well as to South Africa, the United States, Canada, Israel, Russia and the Far East.
His recording of the Warsaw Concerto with the RPO and Jose Serebrier has become a firm favourite with Classic FM. Also, with the RPO he has recorded the Spellbound Concerto, Hubert Bath's Cornish Rhapsody (with Barry Wordsworth), and da Falla's Nights in the Garden of Spain. Other solo recordings include Frank Martin's Ballade for Piano and Orchestra with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and music of Charles Williams (including The Dream of Olwen) with the BBC Concert Orchestra. More recently, with the BBCCO, he recorded film music for piano and orchestra by Mischa Spolianski for Chandos. In lighter vein, he has also made contributions to albums by Jose Carreras (Pure Passion) and Tony Henry (Modern Arias).
As organist, he has recorded an extensive list for EMI and Chandos which includes all the major oratorios of Elgar and the award-winning recording of Britten's War Requiem with the London Symphony Orchestra and Richard Hickox. In 2010 Herald released an album of organ music by Percy Whitlock in which he plays the organs in Brentwood Cathedral and Rugby School Chapel.
Roderick Elms has contributed to many television and film soundtracks including Poirot, Aliens, Dangerous Liaisons, An American Tale and the epic The Lord of the Rings trilogy. He caused something of a stir in a 2003 Prom of film music when, with friend and colleague Alistair Young, he appeared on live television for the solo piano duet part of Malcolm Arnold's The Belles of St Trinian's, dressed in schoolboy uniform - complete with cap and catapult!
He is also a busy composer and arranger and his published compositions and arrangements - which range in diversity from solo instrumental to symphonic music - are heard across the UK and North America performed by such ensembles as the Royal Philharmonic, London Philharmonic, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, English Chamber, Halle, BBC Scottish, Ulster and Toronto Symphony orchestras.
In 2006 Dutton-Epoch released an album of his instrumental music (A Little Fall-ish!) with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Stephen Bell and an album of his Christmas music (Festive Frolic) was released on the Naxos label in 2007 performed by the RPO and the Joyful Company of Singers together with the tenor, Mark Wilde and the organist, Stuart Nicholson. A new recording of his chamber music is to be recorded early in 2012.
Roderick Elms is married to the pianist Joanna Smith, for whom has wrote Paper Dances - a concert piece for piano duet and orchestra which was recorded and broadcast by the BBC in September 2008.
250 WORD BIOGRAPHY
Roderick Elms was born in Ilford and studied at the Royal Academy of Music. He appears in concerts and recordings with most of Britain's major orchestras as both a principal keyboard player and soloist. He has broadcast regularly for the BBC for more than thirty years on Radio 3 as well as for Radio 2's Friday Night is Music Night, and he has made many solo recordings with the Royal Philharmonic, London Philharmonic, London Symphony and BBC Concert Orchestras. For several years he was London pianist to the eminent cellist Mstislav Rostropovich.
As an organist, he has recorded an extensive list for EMI and Chandos including all the major oratorios of Elgar and the award-winning recording of Britten's War Requiem with the LSO. A recording of organ music by Percy Whitlock was released by Herald in 2010. Television and film scores on which he has performed include Poirot, Aliens, Dangerous Liaisons and the epic The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Roderick Elms is also a busy composer and arranger and his music is widely performed both in this country and North America. In 2006 Dutton-Epoch released an album of his instrumental music (A Little Fall-ish!) with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Stephen Bell and an album of his Christmas music (Festive Frolic) was released on the Naxos label in 2007 performed by the RPO and the Joyful Company of Singers together with tenor, Mark Wilde and organist, Stuart Nicholson. Roderick Elms is married to the pianist Joanna Smith, for whom has wrote Paper Dances - a concert piece for piano duet and orchestra which was recorded and broadcast by the BBC in September 2008.