The English composer John Gardner has been amazingly prolific throughout his long life, although largely neglected by recording companies. He was a pupil of R.O. Morris at Oxford, and was subsequently encouraged by the Oxford University Press. His compositions include operas and a quantity of choral music.

Orchestral Music

Gardner’s Symphony No. 1 was written after wartime military service, which had interrupted his career. His Piano Concerto No. 1 had its first performance under Barbirolli at the Cheltenham Festival in 1957, but, in spite of its merits, enjoyed limited success. This, and other works, have long deserved the wider exposure accorded to his vocal music.