Local concert pianist to perform in Malmesbury Abbey

Dominic Irving, who grew up in Devizes, will perform Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A Minor in Malmesbury Abbey on Saturday April 27^th as part of the Royal Wootton Bassett Orchestra’s Spring Concert – Nordic Adventures. Click here for tickets and details of the full programme.

Dominic commented, “I am really looking forward to performing the Grieg Piano Concerto – everyone will know it. It’s so famous and become a part of popular culture ever since the Morecambe and Wise sketch with André Previn! The piece demonstrates all aspects of a pianist’s technique but it’s not all fireworks, there are some lovely cantabile melodies and the second movement is very beautiful and expansive. For most pianists it is a milestone to perform it.”

Dominic studied composition and piano for four years at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London, graduating in 2009 with a 1st-class BMus Honours degree. His tutors included Stephen Montague, Errollyn Wallen, and Philip Fowke. In 2011, he completed an MA in Composition of Music for Film and Television (MA-FTV) at Bristol University, studying with Martin Kiszko and John Pickard. He has an extensive repertoire that includes not only the traditional classical canon, but jazz standards, film themes, English light music, pop, and several of his own transcripts.

Dominic is also an accomplished composer and music copyist. He began composing music at age 10 with his first solo piano piece being played on local radio. Since then he has written over 180 musical works including a piano concerto, a children’s cantata, a requiem, sonatas, comic songs and musical theatre. His music has been performed all over the UK and broadcast on Classic FM and BBC Radio 3. His film scoring experience ranges from short dramas to feature films. 

Many of his compositions have won prizes in national competitions such as London Contemporary Chamber Orchestra Piece of the Year (2008), the John Halford Prize (2009), and A Carol for Christmas (2012). His compositional style is highly melodic, often humorous, and moves freely between bright virtuosity, rich lyricism and stern dissonance.

Royal Wootton Bassett Orchestra is a well-established local orchestra who celebrated their 50^th Anniversary in 2022. With Musical Director, Nicola Ashton, and Leader, Joanne Barrett, the orchestra performs three concerts every year.

The 2024 Spring Concert explores Nordic composers and landscapes in the beautiful surroundings of Malmesbury Abbey. After Grieg’s much-loved piano concerto with soloist Dominic Irving, the orchestra will visit frozen forests, enchanted woods and join a Danish steam railway! As with all the orchestra’s concerts, they are pleased to include a work by a female composer, Swedish born Elfrida Andrée’s Concert Overture in D Major.