# Neville Marriner

Sir Neville Marriner, CH, CBE (15 April 1924 – 2 October 2016) was an English conductor and violinist. Described as "one of the world's greatest conductors", Gramophone lists Marriner as one of the 50 greatest conductors and another compilation ranks Marriner #14 of the 18 "Greatest and Most Famous Conductors of All Time". He founded the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, and his partnership with them is the most recorded of any orchestra and conductor.

## Early life

Marriner was born in Lincoln, England, the son of Herbert Marriner, a carpenter, and his wife Ethel (née Roberts). He was educated at Lincoln School (then a grammar school), where he played in a jazz band with the composer Steve Race. He initially learned the violin as well as the piano from his father, and later studied the violin with Frederick Mountney.
In 1939 he went to the Royal College of Music in London, where he studied with the violinist William Henry Reed and was able to play among the second violins of the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Henry Wood, because many of its members had joined up after the outbreak of the Second World War. He joined up himself in 1941, serving in a reconnaissance role in the British Army, but was invalided out in 1943 with kidney problems. He returned to the Royal College, although Reed had died in the meantime. He then attended the Paris Conservatoire, where he studied with the violinist René Benedetti.

## Career

Marriner was briefly a music teacher at Eton College. In 1948, he became a professor of the Royal College of Music. In 1948 or 1949, he took up the position of second violinist of the Martin String Quartet, continuing to play with the quartet for 13 years. He had met the harpsichordist Thurston Dart while recuperating from kidney damage during the war, and they formed a duo together, which expanded to the Virtuoso String Trio with Peter Gibbs. These were the precursors to Dart's Jacobean Ensemble, in which Marriner played from 1951. He played the violin in two London orchestras: the Philharmonia Orchestra in the early 1950s, and the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO), i.a. under Josef Krips, as principal second violin (1954–69). He also played with the chamber orchestras of Reginald Jacques and Boyd Neel, as well as the London Mozart Players.
In 1958 he founded the Academy of St Martin in the Fields; initially a twelve-member chamber ensemble, it soon expanded to a chamber orchestra, and attracted musicians of a high calibre including Dart, Iona Brown, Christopher Hogwood and Alan Loveday. Marriner recorded prolifically with the Academy. The first recordings in the early 1960s, with Marriner both conducting and playing lead violin, were successful, leading Pierre Monteux, then the LSO's conductor, to encourage Marriner to shift his focus to conducting. Marriner had studied the subject with Monteux at his school in Hancock, Maine, in the United States, from around 1950.
Marriner was the founder and first music director of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, from 1969 to 1978. From 1979 to 1986, he was music director of the Minnesota Orchestra. He was principal conductor of the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra from 1986 to 1989. Except for 1974 to 1980 during which Iona Brown was the director, he remained the musical director of the Academy of St Martin in the Fields until 2011, when he was succeeded by Joshua Bell, continuing to hold the title of Life President until his death. He also conducted many other orchestras, including the New York Chamber Orchestra, Gulbenkian Orchestra, Israel Chamber Orchestra, Australian Chamber Orchestra and Vienna Philharmonic. He continued to conduct into his nineties, becoming the oldest conductor of a Proms concert in 2014, aged 90.
His obituary in The Telegraph praises the Academy of St Martin in the Fields' interpretations of baroque and classical music as "fresh, technically brilliant", and describes them as a "revelation". Marriner preferred modern instruments and effects, and his work came under criticism by Hogwood, among others, for not striving for an "authentic" sound. He later expanded the Academy's repertoire to include Romantic and early-modern music.
Marriner made over 600 recordings covering 2,000 different works – more than any conductor except Herbert von Karajan. He recorded for various labels, including Argo, L'Oiseau Lyre, Philips and EMI Classics. His recorded repertoire ranges from the baroque era to 20th-century British music, as well as opera. He supervised the Mozart selections for the soundtrack of the Oscar-winning 1984 film Amadeus; it became one of the most popular classical music recordings of all time, selling over 6.5 million copies.
Marriner's final recording was completed just a few days before his death, the Mozart Piano Concerto No. 21 with Yeol Eum Son as soloist. His partnership with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields is the most recorded of any orchestra and conductor.

## Personal life and death

Marriner was married twice. His first wife was cellist (and later, antiquarian bookseller) Diana Carbutt, whom he married in 1949. They had two children - Susie, a writer and Andrew, a clarinettist who often worked with his father and who was the principal clarinet of the London Symphony Orchestra for many years. The first marriage was dissolved in 1956. His second wife was Elizabeth Mary "Molly" Sims, whom he married in 1957.
He lived in London and in later life had a second home near Chardstock in Devon. Asked for an epitaph for his gravestone, he replied simply: "Follow the beat." Marriner died from heart failure on 2 October 2016, at the age of 92, at his home in London.

## Centenary

In April 2024 the Academy marked the centenary of its founder’s birth with concerts in St Martin-in-the-Fields church, the Wigmore Hall, the Royal Festival Hall and Lincoln Cathedral (the city of his birth). The Marriner 100 programme commenced on 15 April, the actual centenary day, with a concert at the orchestra’s spiritual home, St Martin-in-the-Fields, directed/conducted by leader Tomo Keller, music director Joshua Bell and former Academy flautist Jaime Martin, in which former members of the Academy Chorus, who had sung under Marriner, performed a suite from Die Schöpfung. BBC Radio 3 broadcast the concert as the climax of its Neville Marriner Day, with all its programmes devoted to his life, work and legacy. A month long centenary exhibition was held in the church.
On 14 April BBC Four broadcast Sir Neville Marriner at the Proms: Mendelssohn's Italian Symphony, from 1983, and Sir Neville Marriner: Schubert's Symphony No 10, from 1988, both with the Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields. On 15 April BBC Radio 3 broadcast "Neville Marriner Day".

## Honours and awards

Described as "one of the world's greatest conductors", Gramophone lists Marriner as one of the 50 greatest conductors and another compilation ranks Marriner #14 of the 18 "Greatest and Most Famous Conductors of All Time". he founded the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, and his partnership with them is the most recorded of any orchestra and conductor.
Marriner was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1979. He was created a Knight Bachelor in 1985. In 1990 the Hamburg-based Alfred Toepfer Foundation awarded Marriner its annual Shakespeare Prize in recognition of his life's work. In the 2015 Queen's Birthday Honours, he was appointed a Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour (CH). He was appointed an officer of the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. His recordings of Mozart were honoured with two Gemeinde Awards from the Austrian Music Academy.
Marriner won three Grammy Awards for his recordings of Haydn's The Creation (1982), the soundtrack for Amadeus (1985) and violin concertos by Brahms and Stravinsky (2003). He also received a total of 9 nominations.

## Discography

| Composer | Title | Other Artists (Marriner as conductor) | Year | Label |
| Handel | Concerti grossi, Op. 3 | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1964 | Argo |
| Various | Recital for Strings | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1965 | Argo |
| Various | Italian Concertos | Roger Lord (clarinet), Barry Tuckwell (horn), Kenneth Heath (cello), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1965 | Argo |
| Various | 18th Century Flute Concertos | Claude Monteux (flute), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1965 | L'Oiseau-Lyre |
| Handel | Concertos for Oboe | Roger Lord (clarinet), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1965 | L'Oiseau-Lyre |
| Vivaldi / Pergolesi | Gloria & Magnificat | Elizabeth Vaughan (soprano), Janet Baker (contralto), Ian Partridge (tenor), Christopher Keyte (bass), Choir of King's College, Cambridge, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1966 | Argo |
| Various | Concertos for Recorders and Strings | Bernard Krainis (recorder), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1966 | Mercury Living Presence |
| Bach | Cantatas BWV 159 & 170 | Janet Baker (contralto), Robert Tear (tenor), John Shirley-Quirk (bass), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1966 | L'Oiseau-Lyre |
| Bach | Cantatas BWV 56 & 82 | John Shirley-Quirk (bass), St. Anthony Singers, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1966 | L'Oiseau-Lyre |
| Mendelssohn | String Symphonies Nos. 9, 10 & 12 | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1966 | Argo |
| Haydn | Concertos for Horn | Barry Tuckwell (horn), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1966 | Argo |
| Rossini | String Sonatas | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1967 | Argo |
| J. Haydn / M. Haydn | Trumpet Concerto / Horn Concerto | Alan Stringer (trumpet), Barry Tuckwell (horn), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1967 | Argo |
| Handel | Arias | Forbes Robinson (bass), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1967 | Argo |
| Stravinsky | Pulcinella / Apollon Musagète | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1968 | Argo |
| Mozart / Haydn | Piano Concerto No. 9 / Piano Concerto in D | Igor Kipnis (harpsichord), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1968 | Columbia Masterworks |
| Handel | Concerti grossi, Op. 6 | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1968 | Decca |
| Gluck | Don Juan | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1968 | Decca |
| Arne / C.P.E. Bach | Concerto in C minor / Concerto in G minor | George Malcolm (harpsichord), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1968 | Argo |
| Mozart | Three Divertimenti for Strings / Serenata Notturna | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1968 | Argo |
| Elgar | Introduction and Allegro / Sospiri / Elegy / Dances from The Spanish Lady | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1968 | Argo |
| Various | Baroque Trumpet Concertos | John Wilbraham (trumpet), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1969 | Argo |
| Strauss / Wagner | Metamorphosen / Siegfried Idyll | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1969 | Argo |
| Rossini / Donizetti | String Sonatas Nos. 2 & 4 / String Quartet in D | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1969 | Argo |
| Tchaikovsky | Serenade for Strings / Souvenir de Florence | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1969 | Argo |
| Various | Baroque Trumpet Anthology | Don Smithers (trumpet), Michael Laird (trumpet), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1970 | Philips |
| Haydn | Symphonies Nos. 52 & 53 "L'Impériale" | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1970 | Philips |
| M. Haydn / J. Haydn | Duo Concertante for Viola and Organ / Organ Concerto in C major | Simon Preston (organ), Stephen Shingles (viola), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1970 | Argo |
| Bartók | Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta / Divertimento | Leslie Pearson (celesta), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1970 | Argo |
| Britten | Saint Nicolas | Robert Tear (tenor), King's College Choir, Cambridge, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1970 | EMI |
| Elgar | The Lighter Elgar | Northern Sinfonia | 1970 | EMI |
| J.C. Bach | Six Symphonies, Op. 3 | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1970 | Philips |
| Various | Strings & Brass | John Wilbraham (trumpet), Philip Jones Brass Ensemble, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1970 | Argo |
| Dvořák / Grieg | Serenade for Strings / Holberg Suite | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1970 | Argo |
| Mendelssohn | Piano Concertos | Brenda Lucas (piano), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1970 | Argo |
| Vivaldi | The Four Seasons | Alan Loveday (violin), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1970 | Argo |
| Britten | Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings • Les Illuminations | Heather Harper (soprano), Robert Tear (tenor), Alan Civil (horn), Northern Sinfonia | 1971 | Angel Records |
| Mozart | Symphonies Nos. 35 "Haffner" & 40 / March, K. 408, No. 2 | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1971 | Philips |
| Bach | Brandenburg Concertos | Thurston Dart (harpsichord and arranger), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1971 | Philips |
| Various | Living Baroque | Don Smithers (trumpet), John Wilbraham (trumpet), Carmel Kaine (violin), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1971 | Philips |
| Mozart | Eine kleine Nachtmusik / Sinfonia Concertante | Alan Loveday (violin), Stephen Shingles (viola), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1971 | Argo |
| Bach | Suites for Orchestra | William Bennett (flute), Thurston Dart (harpsichord), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1971 | Argo |
| Various | Trumpet Concerti | John Wilbraham (trumpet), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1971 | Argo |
| Various | Academy '72 | Barry Tuckwell (horn), Josef Suk (violin), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | EMI |
| Mozart | Exsultate Jubilate | Erna Spoorenberg (soprano), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Argo |
| Shostakovich / Stravinsky | Concerto for Piano, Trumpet and Strings / Capriccio | John Ogdon (piano), John Wilbraham (trumpet), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Argo |
| Mozart | Clarinet Concerto / Bassoon Concerto / Andante for Flute | Jack Brymer (clarinet), Michael Chapman (bassoon), Claude Monteux (flute), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Philips |
| Handel | Ballet Music | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Argo |
| Mozart | Concerto for Flute and Harp / Sinfonia Concertante, K. 297b | Claude Monteux (flute), Osian Ellis (harp), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Philips |
| Bach | The Complete Harpsichord Concertos | Igor Kipnis (harpsichord), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | CBS |
| Various | English String Music | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | EMI |
| Mozart | Piano Concertos Nos. 19 & 23 | Alfred Brendel (piano), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Philips |
| Mozart | Overtures and Ballet Music | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | EMI |
| Mozart | Coronation Mass / Litaniae Lauretanae BMV, K. 195 | Ileana Cotrubaș (soprano), Helen Watts (contralto), Robert Tear (tenor), John Shirley-Quirk (bass), Schola Cantorum of Oxford, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Argo |
| Mozart | Piano Concertos Nos. 12 & 17 | Alfred Brendel (piano), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Philips |
| Mozart | Symphonies Nos. 29 & 25 | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Argo |
| Vaughan Williams | Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis / The Lark Ascending / Five Variants of Dives and Lazarus / Fantasia on Greensleeves | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Argo |
| Mozart | Divertimento in D, K. 334 / Notturno for Four Orchestras | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Argo |
| Mozart | The Horn Concertos | Barry Tuckwell (horn), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | EMI |
| Mozart | The 4 Horn Concertos | Alan Civil (horn), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Philips |
| Tippett | Little Music for String Orchestra / Concerto for Double String Orchestra / Fantasia Concertante on a Theme of Corelli | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Argo |
| Handel | Music for the Royal Fireworks / Water Music | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Argo |
| Mozart | The Symphonies, Vol. 1 | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Decca |
| Handel / Mozart / Rossini | Meister der Musik | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1972 | Decca |
| Mahler / Britten | Lieder Eines Fahrenden Gesellen / Nocturne | Robert Tear (tenor), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1973 | Argo |
| Mozart | Violin Concerto in G, K. 216 / Concertone for 2 Violins, K. 190 | Alan Loveday (violin), Carmel Kaine (violin), Iona Brown (violin), Kenneth Heath (cello), Tess Miller (oboe), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1973 | Decca |
| Bizet / Prokofiev | Symphony in C / Classical Symphony | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1973 | Argo |
| Bach | Cantatas BWV 202 & 209 | Elly Ameling (soprano), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1973 | EMI |
| Walton / Prokofiev | Sonata for Strings / Visions Fugitives | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1973 | Argo |
| Mozart | Flute Concerto, K. 313 / Oboe Concerto, K. 314 | Claude Monteux (flute), Neil Black (oboe), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1973 | Philips |
| Mozart | The Early Symphonies | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1973 | Philips |
| Vivaldi | L'estro armonico | Alan Loveday (violin), Carmel Kaine (violin), Iona Brown (violin), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1973 | Argo |
| Tchaikovsky / Dvořák | Serenades for Strings | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1973 | Argo |
| Rossini | Famous Overtures | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1974 | Philips |
| Various | Munrow & Marriner | David Munrow (treble recorder), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1974 | EMI |
| Schoenberg / Webern / Hindemith | Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4 / Fünf Sätze, Op. 4 / Fünf Stücke, Op. 44, No. 4 | Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra | 1974 | Argo |
| Mozart | Piano Concertos Nos. 20 & 23 | Alfred Brendel (piano), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1974 | Philips |
| Corelli | Concerti grossi, Op. 6 | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1974 | Argo |
| Various | The Academy in Concert | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1974 | EMI |
| Various | Six Concertos for Trumpet | Maurice André (trumpet), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1974 | Erato |
| Corelli | Christmas Concerto | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1974 | Argo |
| Suk / Strauss / Janáček | Serenade for Strings / Sextet from "Capriccio" / Suite for String Orchestra | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1975 | Argo |
| J.C. Bach / Haydn | Harpsichord Concerto in A / Harpsichord Concerto in D / Overture in D | George Malcolm (harpsichord), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1975 (recorded in 1969 | Decca |
| Rodrigo | Concierto Madrigal / Fantasía Para un Gentilhombre | Pepe Romero (guitar), Ángel Romero (guitar), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1975 | Philips |
| Mozart | Piano Concertos Nos. 27 & 18 | Alfred Brendel (piano), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1975 | Philips |
| Bach | Concerto for Three Violins / Concerto for Violin and Oboe / Concerto for Flute | William Bennett (flute), Tess Miller (oboe), Carmel Kaine (violin), Richard Studt (violin), Ronald Thomas (violin), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1975 | Argo |
| Stravinsky | Concerto in D / Danses Concertantes / Dumbarton Oaks | Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra | 1975 | EMI |
| Vivaldi | La Stravaganza, Op. 4 | Carmel Kaine (violin), Alan Loveday (violin), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1975 | Argo |
| Bach | The Art of Fugue | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1975 | Philips |
| Mendelssohn | Piano Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 | Murray Perahia (piano), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1975 | Columbia Masterworks |
| Beethoven | Symphony No. 4 / Grosse Fuge | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1975 | Philips |
| Haydn | 12 Name Symphonies | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | Philips |
| Various | A Festival of English Music | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | Argo |
| Haydn | Symphonies Nos. 48 "Maria Theresa" & 85 "La Reine" | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | Philips |
| Various | Music for Double Bass | Rodney Slatford (double bass), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | EMI |
| Handel | Complete Organ Concertos | George Malcolm (organ), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | Argo |
| Haydn | Symphonies Nos. 43 "Mercury" & 59 "Fire" | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | Philips |
| Handel | Messiah | Elly Ameling (soprano), Anna Reynolds (contralto), Philip Langridge (tenor), Gwynne Howell (bass), Academy and Chorus of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | Argo |
| Telemann | Don Quichotte / Viola Concerto / Overture in D | Stephen Shingles (viola), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | Argo |
| Barber / Ives / Copland | Adagio for Strings / Symphony No. 3 / Quite City | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | Argo |
| Haydn | Symphonies Nos. 44 "Mourning" & 49 "La Passione" | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | Philips |
| Handel | Two Double Concertos ("A Due Cori") | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | EMI |
| Respighi | Ancient Airs and Dances | Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra | 1976 | Angel Records |
| Bach | Arias from Cantatas and Oratorios | Janet Baker (contralto), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | EMI |
| Mozart | Piano Concerto No. 22 / Concert Rondos K. 382 & 386 | Alfred Brendel (piano), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | Philips |
| Bach | Violin Concertos | Henryk Szeryng (violin), Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | Philips |
| Butterworth / Britten | A Shropshire Lad / Two English Idylls / The Banks of Green Willow / Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | Argo |
| Haydn | Symphonies Nos. 100 "Military" & 103 "Drum Roll" | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1976 | Philips |
| Vivaldi | Concerti for Wind and Strings, Vol. 1 | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1977 | Argo |
| Vivaldi | Concerti for Wind and Strings, Vol. 2 | Academy of St. Martin in the Fields | 1977 | Argo |