The mission of Tŷ Cerdd – Music Centre Wales is to support, develop and promote the creation, performance and empowering experience of music, both in and of Wales. In so doing, we aspire to reach people in local communities, nationally and internationally, promoting excellence through vision, participation and training.

Jasper Dommett (b. 1997) is an accomplished British composer who is currently pursuing a PhD at the Royal College of Music, where they also hold the post of Mendelssohn Scholar. In 2023, Jasper graduated with double distinction from the Royal Academy of Music, where they also received a DipRAM for their outstanding work. Throughout their studies, they were supported by the Ralph Vaughn Williams Trust and the Countess of Munster Trust. Prior to this, Jasper graduated with first-class honours from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.

Jasper has a flair for creating “intense orchestral” landscapes with “crystalline gestures” and “languid lyricism” (The Scotsman). Their work Night Music, written for the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, was the start of this fascination, leading to nominations for an Ivor Novello Award in the Large Orchestral Category, a shortlisting in the inaugural Michael Tippett Medal for Music, and the awarding of the Paul Mealor Award for Student Composers.

Their work, Dreams of Isolation, written for Sir Andrew Davis and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra was a deeper dive into the power of the orchestra. Described as “unique and original” (Sir Andrew Davis) the piece is a reflection on the transformative force of dreams with “haunting textures” and “impressive melodic writing” (The Art’s Desk).

In 2023, Jasper received a nomination for their second Ivor Novello Award, recognised for their piece Disco! Disco! Good! Good?. This work, written and workshopped for Aaron Holloway Nahum and the Riot Ensemble, pays tribute to the queer ballroom culture that emerged during the disco era, which created safe spaces for LGBTQIA+ individuals to express themselves through dance and fashion. This recognition contributes to the development of their reputation as a composer with a passion for innovation and pushing artistic boundaries.

2021 saw the sell-out premiere of Jasper’s first opera, Coram Boy, based on Helen Edmundson’s theatrical adaptation of Jamila Gavin’s highly acclaimed novel an experience which has left them excited about new possibilities for the art form. Looking ahead to 2024, Jasper is set to debut a new opera, Fanny & Stella’s Last Day Out, in collaboration with librettist Jessica Walker for the Tète-a-tète festival. This work delves into the lives of two Victorian drag queens known for defying societal boundaries.

At present, Jasper is actively collaborating with two esteemed musical ensembles. Their work with the London Philharmonic Orchestra involves the creation of a new work for dance exploring themes of identity and microtonality, due for premiere in the summer of 2024. Additionally, Jasper is currently participating in the Royal Philharmonic Society's composers scheme, where they are collaborating closely with Lotte Betts-Dean and the Hebrides Ensemble on a new work for 2025.

Jasper’s music has also been performed by soloists and ensembles such as London Sinfonietta, Psappha, Berkeley Ensemble, Fenella Humphreys, Tabea Debus, Joseph Havlat, and George Fu; with broadcasts on BBC Radio 3 and performances at Usher Hall, Hallé St Peters, St Martin-in-the-Fields, St Davids Hall, Royal Glasgow Concert Hall, and BBC Hoddinott Hall.

Barnaby Martin is an award-winning composer of contemporary classical music based in England. His compositions have been performed widely in the UK and internationally by groups including the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Orchestra of Opera North, the Berkeley Ensemble, the Ligeti Quartet, the choir of St Paul’s Cathedral, Wells Cathedral Choir and Illuminare choir. In 2018, his work for large orchestra, Quanta, was selected as the winner of the Toru Takemitsu Composition award. The piece, which was one of four to be selected by Unsuk Chin out of 143 entries from 40 countries, was performed by the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra in the final of the competition in May 2018. Barnaby is the only composer from the UK to have received first prize in the history of the competition. Barnaby’s work has achieved acclaim and recognition in several other competitions and prizes including the DARE New Composer’s Forum Competition (Stillness), the Berkeley Ensemble’s New Cobbett Prize (Lazarus) as well as the New Music for St Paul’s Cathedral Competition (Videntes Stellam). Barnaby also received his first nomination for a BASCA British Composer Award in 2017 for his contemporary cantata, The Temptations of Christ.

Barnaby enjoys frequent collaborations with musicians and has been commissioned to write music for a variety of different ensembles and instrumentalists. He has written pieces for the Psappha Ensemble’s Benedict Holand as part of the group’s Composing for Violin scheme (Leda Atomica) as well as new pieces for oboist James Turnbull (Christ of Saint John of the Cross), the clarinettist John Slack (Hypercubus), the pianist Joseph Houston (Submerging) and organist Simon Johnson (O Herre Gott, dein göttlich Wort). The piece for Simon Johnson was commissioned by Choir & Organ Magazine and contributed to William Whitehead’s ongoing Orgelbüchlein Project. Barnaby has worked extensively with singers as well as instrumentalists and enjoys regular work with choirs in the UK. Most recently, he was commissioned by Illuminare choir to write a new 45-minute cantata for two choirs, soloists and percussion (The Temptations of Christ) which was premiered by the group in March 2017, directed by RPS award-winning conductor Christopher Stark.

Barnaby has studied composition with Kenneth Hesketh and from October 2018, he will begin working towards a PhD in composition at the University of Birmingham under the supervision of Michael Zev Gordon.

Composer of music, drinker of tea, lover of London

Samuel Davies began as a classically trained composer, his work notably used in the broadcast of Barcolana51 on BT Sport, and performed in a workshop by the Wind Quintet ensemble from the BBC National Orchestra of Wales (2019). He specialises in music for both Film and Media and has been credited in many such student productions from Middlesex to the North of Wales. He is well studied in a wide variety of compositional styles, from Electrical acoustic to the classical style which bring a unique quality and flare to his music.

NEW PROFILE!! :D
soundcloud.com/thomevansmusic
New stuff coming soon xx

London Philharmonic Orchestra Young Composer 24/25

Winner of the William Mathias Prize 2024.

PhD from Bangor University, 2024.

Zach Reading is following