Ep. 63: Daniel Pailthorpe

I'm pleased to share this podcast with Daniel Pailthorpe, Co-Principal Flautist with the BBC Symphony Orchestra. We had a fascinating discussion about his musical journey growing up, parallels between flute playing and singing, solo performances, what it's like playing for one of the top symphony orchestras in the country, performing at the BBC Proms and Royal Albert Hall (including a memorable concert involving the then five members of Monty Python!), tone production and vibrato.

Podcast interview recorded 26 September 2022 at Daniel's home in Richmond, London; Daniel's additional commentary about tone production and throat tuning recorded 12 November 2022; podcast released 16 November 2022.

Due to some digital noise when I started recording, here's also what he said when I asked him about his musical journey growing up: "I actually don't come from a particularly musical family. My father loved music but was not a trained musician at all. Bach was his passion and he transferred that to me. It was just a very pure love of music without having an instrument but they very much encouraged me in my music, took me to concerts. It so happened that both of my godparents who they chose when I was born were both very keen musicians and so they helped to introduce me to the world of music."

Crumb - Voice of the Whale: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bd76Q-yA5M4.

Daniel's arrangement of Prokofiev's Scenes from Romeo and Juliet - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wmca0PTyy-c.

Daniel's arrangement of Scenes from Romeo and Juliet for oboe - https://youtu.be/lB07FNY84DQ.

Daniel talks about "Romeo and Juliet" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkJ_nlx0Drk.

Podcast edited by Joe Eftihiou, additional edits from Daniel Pailthorpe and Annabelle Lee.

End music: Margaret Hubicki (2005). From the Isles of the Sea [performed by Daniel Pailthorpe and James Kirby]. On Dedication in Time: Chamber Music by Margaret Hubicki. Chandos. (Premiere recording).

Podcast intro and outro music by Helena and Annabelle Lee.

One of the few orchestral principals of international standing who plays on a modern wood flute, Daniel Pailthorpe has gained a world-wide following for the uniqueness and breadth of his sound as well as the warmth of his musicianship. As co-principal flautist of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Daniel is regularly heard on BBC Radio 3 and at the Proms. He features prominently on the BBCTV 'Symphony' series and is a familiar face on the Last Night of the Proms.

Together with his wife Emily Pailthorpe and the pianist Julian Milford, he founded the London Conchord Ensemble. The group has rapidly gained an international reputation, performing in some of the world's most prestigious concert series. His recordings, ranging from Poulenc to Bach and George Crumb, have enjoyed many accolades, among them Sunday Telegraph's CD of the week and Classic FM’s CD of the month.

Singing featured prominently in Daniel's musical training: he began as a choirboy aged six, was a finalist in the UK Chorister of the Year competition, and went on to become a Choral scholar at Clare College, Cambridge. After a year of postgraduate study at the Royal Academy of Music, Daniel was the recipient of the Leonard Bernstein Fellowship at the Tanglewood Music Centre, USA. His flute studies took him to Paris and America and his teachers include William Bennett, Derek Honner, Gaston Crunelle, Thomas Nyfenger and Geoffrey Gilbert.

He has gone on to be much in demand as a guest principal with many orchestras, including the London Symphony Orchestra and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe. He is one of London’s most sought-after session musicians, featuring on the soundtracks for many films. As a teacher Daniel has been a coach for the National Youth Orchestra and is a Professor of flute at the Royal College of Music.

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