Gipps, Ruth (Dorothy Louisa)

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Gipps, Ruth (Dorothy Louisa)

Gipps, Ruth (Dorothy Louisa), English conductor and composer; b. Bexhill-on-Sea, Sussex, Feb. 20, 1921; d. Eastbourne, East Sussex, Feb. 23, 1999. She studied oboe with Leon Goossens, piano with Kendall Taylor, and composition with Vaughan Williams at the Royal Coll. of Music in London (1937-42), and attended the Matthay Piano School (1942-43); obtained a B.Mus. in 1941 and a D.Mus. in 1948. She began her performing career as a pianist and oboist. After serving as director of the City of Birmingham Choir (1948-50), she was founder-conductor of the London Repertoire Orch. (1955-86). She also was founder-conductor of the London Chanticleer Orch. (from 1961), and music director of the Rondel Ensemble, a wind group. She taught at Trinity Coll., London (1959-66), the Royal Coll. of Music (1967-77), and Kingston Polytechnic (1977-79). In 1981 she was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire.

Works

ORCH Clarinet Concerto (1940); Oboe Concerto (1941; London, June 13, 1942); 5 syms.: No. 1 (1942; Birmingham, March 25, 1945), No. 2 (1945; Birmingham, Oct. 3, 1946), No. 3 (1965; London, March 19, 1966), No. 4 (1972; London, May 28, 1973) and No. 5 (1982; London, March 6, 1983); Violin Concerto (1943; London, Feb. 5, 1944); Death on the Pale Horse (Birmingham, Nov. 14, 1943); Chanticleer, overture (1944); Song for Orchestra (1948; Sutton Coldfield, Jan. 10, 1949); Piano Concerto (1948; Birmingham, March 21, 1949); Cringlemire Garden for Strings (Birmingham, Feb. 20, 1952); Coronation Procession (1953; Melbourne, Sept. 27, 1954); The Rainbow, pageant overture (1954; Birmingham, Oct. 6, 1964); Concerto for Violin, Viola, and Orch. (1957; London, Jan. 30, 1962); Horn Concerto (1968; London, Nov. 15, 1969); Leviathan for Double Bassoon and Chamber Orch. (1969; London, Feb. 13, 1971); Ambarvalia (1988); Introduction and Carol: The Ox and the Ass for Double Bass and Chamber Orch. (1988). CHAMBER: 2 oboe sonatas (1939, 1985); Trio for Oboe, Clarinet, and Piano (1940); Sabrina, string quartet (1940); Quintet for Oboe, Clarinet, Violin, Viola, and Cello (1941); Brocade, piano quartet (1941); Rhapsody for Clarinet and String Quartet (1942); Violin Sonata (1954); Clarinet Sonata (1955); String Quartet (1956); Horn Sonatina (1960); Triton for Horn and Piano (1970); Cello Sonata (1978); Wind Octet (1983); The Riders of Rohan for Tenor Trombone and Piano (1987). OTHER: Various vocal works.