Settings of Philip Larkin by Brian Blyth Daubney

Settings to music of eight Philip Larkin poems by Brian Blyth Daubney

The composer and poet Brian Blyth Daubney was born in Bardney, Lincolnshire in 1929. He studied at Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Horncastle, Lincolnshire and at the University of Leicester between 1947-1951. His music professor there was Dr Benjamin Burrows, about whom he wrote his M Phil thesis in 1980. He spent three years in the Royal Navy and subsequently taught at a number of secondary schools in Lincolnshire. He then spent twenty years, from 1962-1982 teaching in Leicester at the City of Leicester Training College that became Leicester Polytechnic and then De Montfort University where he was Principal Lecturer in Music. He has been Editor, and later Chairman, of the British Music Society and was an examiner for the London College of Music.

Now, fully retired, he devotes his time to writing music and poetry including choral music and over 200 'art' songs for voice and piano and was winner of the English and Poetry Songs Society's annual competition.

The songs are unpublished and unrecorded as yet, and commented that he admired Larkin's poetry and enjoyed trying to set it to music.

Access will be granted to any accredited reader. The material was received as a PDF but a hardcopy version has been created for access.

Brian Blyth Daubney

The material was given to us by Brian Blyth Daubney in September 2009

Vocal Score for 'The North Ship' [written by Philip Larkin] composed by William Beckmann and a recording on CD performed by The Helios Choir 24th April 2006 [Ref U DX310]