THE SYMPHONIES OF WILLIAM ALWYN :
A CRITICAL AND ANALYTICAL STUDY

Abstract

Despite being born into a relatively unmusical family. William Alwyn (1905-1985), displayed musical talent from an early age, and obtained a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music at the age of fifteen. He started composing when he was very young and continued almost until his death, leaving a prodigious output, including scores for over 200 films. In his forties he pronounced himself dissatisfied with his earlier compositions, and set out to write more “serious” music, and in particular, a series of symphonies.

Alwyn wrote five symphonies in all; the first four, written over a 10-year period in the late 1940s and 50s, form an inter-related sequence, though in form each is very different to the others. The fifth symphony, written when he was in his seventies, has an artistic inspiration and is a much shorter work with little in common with the previous four.

Although Alwyn’s symphonies are firmly rooted in the tonal idiom, he developed his own very individual approach to tonality, thematic development, and symphonic structure. This thesis presents a detailed critical analysis of each of the symphonies, and briefly describes their place in the context of other British symphonies, and in the prevailing musical trends of the time.