Fit for a king

William Walton composed music for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II and King George VI, pieces of pomp and circumstance which we’ll likely here again during this weekend’s coronation of King Charles III. But Walton grew up far from Buckingham Palace and the world of the Windsors, in the northern working-class town of Oldham, seemingly destined to work at the cotton mill. Even when he escaped to Oxford and then London, making high-society friends such as the Sitwells, his early music was intense and avant-garde - not at all suitable for a royal affair. So how did Walton become the royal composer of choice? This week, we’ll find out.

In today’s programme, we hear how Walton began to find both love and success - but found himself increasingly torn between the avant-garde and the establishment. When the crown calls on him to compose a piece for the coronation, he is forced to make a choice.

Viola Concerto: I. Andante comodo, II. Vivo, e molto preciso
London Philharmonic Orchestra
David Aaron Carpenter, viola
Vladimir Jurowski, conductor

As You Like It: A Poem for Orchestra after Shakespeare
RTÉ Concert Orchestra
Andrew Penny, conductor

First Symphony
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Edward Gardner, conductor

Crown Imperial
English Northern Philharmonia
Paul Daniel, conductor