Background
Brockless was born in London, the son of an amateur French horn player and baritone.
composer conductor music educator
Brockless was born in London, the son of an amateur French horn player and baritone.
Brockless studied organ and composition at the Royal College of Music under the direction of Herbert Howells, a great influence on the young composer. Howells" influence can be seen most in "An English Elegy", dedicated to Howells and originally the slow movement of a quartet written for his Bachelor of Music degree.
He was a much respected Choral Trainer and his annual performances of Bach"s Street John Passion were noted for their musicality. He subsequently worked with Celibidache in Europe and Scandinavia. Foreign twenty years Brockless was a part-time professor at the Royal Academy of Music and was subsequently made an Honorary Member.
He was also senior lecturer at the University of Surrey and taught at Goldsmith"s and Morley colleges.
Among the orchestras he conducted were The London Schubert Orchestra (founded by George Schubert, Brockless was musical director), the English Chamber Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Philomusica of London, Northern Sinfonia and The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. He gave concerts (With The London Schubert Orchestra) in Romania, Palermo, Stockholm, Brussels, Venezuela, Denmark, as well as conducting choral and orchestral performances for the British Broadcasting Corporation, Belgian, Swedish and Danish Radio Orchestras.
He pioneered the presentation of Choral music on television with the Independent Television series "A Date With Music". In 1971 Brockless left Street Bartholomew"s due to the pressure of work but returned as Director of Music again in 1979.
He remained there for the rest of his life.
Brockless"s hobbies included cricket, ornithology, and reading. Works Other Works.