Christopher Gunning | |
|---|---|
 Gunning in 2008 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | (1944-08-05)5 August 1944 Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England |
| Died | 25 March 2023(2023-03-25) (aged 78) Croxley Green, Hertfordshire, England |
| Genres |
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| Occupation | Composer |
Spouses | |
Christopher Gunning (5 August 1944 – 25 March 2023) was an Englishcomposer of concert works and music for films and television.
Gunning was born inCheltenham,Gloucestershire on 5 August 1944, the younger of two sons. He grew up inHendon, northwest London. His father was a pianist and educator from South Africa, and his mother had been one of his father's pupils.[1] He studied at theGuildhall School of Music and Drama, where his tutors includedEdmund Rubbra andRichard Rodney Bennett.[2]
Gunning's film and television compositions received many awards, including the 2007BAFTA Award for Best Film Music forLa Vie en Rose, as well as three additional awards forAgatha Christie's Poirot,Middlemarch, andPorterhouse Blue. He also won threeIvor Novello Awards, for the TV miniseriesRebecca, and the film scores forUnder Suspicion (1991), andFirelight (1997). His other film scores includedGoodbye Gemini (1970),Hands of the Ripper (1971),Ooh... You Are Awful (1972), the film version ofMan About the House (1974),In Celebration (1975),Rogue Male (1976),Charlie Muffin (1979),Rise and Fall of Idi Amin (1981),Knights of God (1987),When the Whales Came (1989),Lighthouse Hill (2004) andGrace of Monaco (2014).
In the 1970s and 1980s, Gunning collaborated with rock musicianColin Blunstone and was responsible for the distinctive string arrangement on Blunstone's albumOne Year, including the 1972 hit "Say You Don't Mind". He also provided the string arrangements on "Won't Somebody Dance With Me", the Ivor Novello award-winning song written and performed byLynsey De Paul[3] as well as another of de Paul's hit singles "My Man and Me" and her 1974 album "Taste Me... Don't Waste Me".[4] He was also repondible for the orchestral arrangements on "Don't Let Me Down", "Love Makes The World Go Round" and "The Air That I Breathe" from the 1974 album Hollies byThe Hollies.
Gunning composed the music for nearly all of thePoirot TV films starringDavid Suchet, and worked on all three series ofRosemary and Thyme featuringFelicity Kendal andPam Ferris. HisNew Yorkshire Theme was used as daily start-up music forYorkshire Television from 1982 and an extract from that piece formed the theme to YTV'slocal news programmeCalendar.[5] His music for theMartini advertising campaign, heard around the world for thirty years, won threeClio Awards. The music he composed forBlack Magic commercials, in 1971 and used for a further 15 years, became equally famous.[6] Also (indicating Gunning's sense of humour and self-deprecation), his music for aWinalot Prime dog food commercial in 1988 was later expanded intoThe Long March and recorded and released as a charity record by the Barking Light Orchestra.[7][8]
In addition to performances of his television and film scores, Gunning'sConcerto for Saxophone and Orchestra andThe Lobster have been performed at various venues includingLondon'sSouthbank Centre.The Saxophone Concerto, played byJohn Harle with theAcademy of St. Martin in the Fields, has been released bySanctuary Classics,The Lobster is available on the Meridian label, and thePiano Concerto, Symphony No. 1 andStorm have been released byAlbany Records. Later works include concertos for theoboe andclarinet and the CDSkylines. TheRoyal Philharmonic Orchestra performed the premiere of Symphonies No.3 and No.4, coupled with Concerto for Oboe and String Orchestra. This has been released byChandos Records.[9]
Gunning completed thirteen symphonies between 2001 and 2020,[1] several of which have been recorded by theRoyal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by the composer and released on Signum Classics.[8] A commemorative concert was held atCadogan Hall in London on 10 March 2024, with a live performance of his Symphony No 10 (2016) by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, as well as contributions from guitaristJohn Williams, saxophonist John Harle and singer songwriter Colin Blunstone.[10][11]
In recognition of Gunning's contribution to music, he received aBASCA Gold Badge Award on 19 October 2011.[12] As well as his many film awards listed above, Gunning's scores forThe Big Battalions,Wild Africa,Cold Lazarus andWhen the Whales Came also received nominations for BAFTA and Ivor Novello Awards.
In 1974, Gunning married Annie Farrow; they had four daughters and divorced in 1999.[1] He remarried in 2004, to Svitlana Saienko. He died from kidney cancer at his home inCroxley Green, Hertfordshire, on 25 March 2023, at the age of 78.[1][13]
March 22, 2024:Tomorrow, Classic FM will be playing some highlights from our concert that celebrated the life and work of Christopher Gunninng.
...we announce the death of Christopher Gunning, who passed away on the 25th of March 2023 at the age of 78 after a long and courageous battle with kidney cancer. He died peacefully in his bed at his Hertfordshire house...
