Elis Pehkonen (1942 - ).

Born in Swaffham, Norfolk, of Finnish extraction, Elis began composing at the age of twelve and at eighteen won a Composition Scholarship to the Royal College of Music, London where he studied with Peter Racine Fricker, and at various times with Benjamin Britten, Lennox Berkeley, Richard Rodney Bennet and Anthony Payne.

BFCS gave the second performance in 1982 of his Buccinate Tuba (Written for the Three Choirs Festival in 1980) and such was the response of audience and performers that he was given a commission by BFCS for a work to be premièred in 1986.

The result was Russian Requiem, subsequently performed by many Choral Societies throughout the UK and abroad, the first of five premières by BFCS (three commissioned by the Society).

Elis Pehkonen composed Laudate for the 150th Anniversary Concert of BFCS and he wrote:

'I feel it has been a great honour to write music for voices and orchestra for this special occasion. The composition of Laudate has proved a wonderful challenge and I trust that those who perform it and those who hear it will understand that it is a humble expression of thanks to Almighty God for all his blessings, especially those of music'.

John Joubert (1927 - ).

"Communication is important to me, I want to be understood, enjoyed and used. I do not want to live in the enclosed and artificial world of 'Contemporary music', but in the repertory of musicians whom I respect, in the schools, in the churches, and in the theatre. I also have a profound respect for the musical cultures of amateurs and with this very important section of the musical public I have enjoyed some of my most rewarding musical experiences."

Born in Cape Town, South Africa, John went to an Anglican school where the music teacher had been an assistant to Ivor Atkins at Worcester Cathedral. In his teens, John's schooling imbued him with a love of English Cathedral music, over the years being influenced by the music of Elgar, Walton and Britten, as well as Bartók, Janácek, Stravinsky and Shostakovich. At the age of nineteen he won a scholarship to study at the Royal Academy of Music in London, where he gained a Royal Philharmonic Society prize. When he was twenty-four he married Mary, a Primary School teacher in Hull, and he wrote the ever popular Torches for her pupils; in the same year, Barbirolli conducted the Hallé Orchestra in his Overture opus 3 at the Cheltenham Festival.

Having lectured at both Hull and Birmingham Universities for many years, John concentrates his time at home in Moseley, Birmingham, in composition. BFCS commissioned him to compose a work to celebrate the Centenary of the City of Birmingham in 1989, and Jeremy Patterson conducted the première of For the Beauty of the Earth in Birmingham Cathedral in the presence of the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress of Birmingham.

During the 'Towards the Millennium' series of concerts instigated by Sir Simon Rattle, BFCS were proud to feature John Joubert's choral compositions on many occasions.

Gordon C Allen 18th July 2000