1. Nightingale
2. Song Thrush
3. Blackbird

Song Thrush

I'm a composer, songwriter and arranger. I write for theatre, dance, opera, the screen and the concert stage. 

All this variety calls for a flexible, open-minded and collaborative approach to composition and an enthusiasm for music in all styles. 

I have composed dance, opera and theatre scores for The Royal Opera House, The English National Ballet, The Polka Theatre, W11 Opera, The Unicorn Theatre and The Petersham Playhouse. My chamber opera "Dr Quimpugh's Compendium of Peculiar Afflictions" was nominated for a Fringe First award at the 2012 Edinburgh Festival. My ballet "Pinocchio" was filmed and broadcast by the BBC in 2006. My dance theatre work "The Wind in the Willows" transferred to the West End in December 2013 and won an Olivier Award in 2014.
The Polka Theatre adaptation of "Peter Pan", for which I wrote the music, won an Off-West End Award in 2015.

I am represented by Berlin Associates and published by Faber Music.

Reviews:

For The Wind in the Willows 2013: "The terrific ensemble sing, dance and use puppetry to take the audience on the most unforgettable journey. I sat in utter awe of Martin Ward's music which is just a dream. The detail within the score is phenomenal and the band are beyond incredible. I would happily listen to the music for the rest of time." West End Frame

For Skitterbang Island 2010: "If you thought that opera was only for grown-ups, think again. This 45-minute, sung-through opera by librettist Phil Porter and composer Martin Ward combines music, singing and puppetry to terrific effect... This show is delightful in every way... and the piece has genuine emotional muscle, underlined by a score that is musically playful, and which slyly slips in every operatic convention, from arias to trios." Guardian

For Dr Quimpugh 2012: "...a soaring collection of songs, composed by the supremely talented Martin Ward, each one detailing the bizarre story of a patient the doctor has helped overcome a surreal medical condition. The crazy logic that underpins each story is turned into genuinely moving mini-dramas that find emotion in the unlikeliest of places." Scotsman

For Pinocchio 2007: "Martin Ward's score is an apt blend of different styles: yearning, klezmer-style rhapsodies, off-kilter folk tunes, cheery organ-grinder harmonies, portentously jangling strings." Guardian

Song Thrush

MartinWard