Alastair Putt

Composer

Alastair Putt was a composer, tenor, and guitarist. He performed internationally with many leading vocal ensembles, including the BBC Singers and EXAUDI, and his compositions continue to be played both in the UK and abroad.

Born in Kingston upon Thames in 1983, Alastair studied at New College, Oxford and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. He was a Composition Fellow at Tanglewood Music Center in 2012 and returned the following year for the premiere of his commission for brass ensemble, Blaze. A commission for the London Symphony Orchestra, Spiral, was premiered in 2014 at the Barbican Hall and released on the Panufnik Legacies II CD in 2016.

In 2018, Alastair was commissioned to celebrate Finchley Children’s Music Group’s 60th anniversary; the resulting piece, for children’s choir and harp, received its premiere at the Queen Elizabeth Hall and was subsequently performed live on French television by the Maîtrise de Radio France in Chartres Cathedral, one of several performances throughout France in 2019. The same year, his wind quintet Halazuni was programmed at the BBC Proms to celebrate the maiden outing of the Knussen Chamber Orchestra at Cadogan Hall. Other commissions included works for the Choir of New College, Oxford, the Brinkburn Festival, EXAUDI, the London Contemporary Orchestra, the guitarist Sam Cave, and the viola da gambist Liam Byrne.

A valued, vibrant, and much-loved member of the UK’s classical music scene for nearly two decades, Alastair died in 2022 at the age of 39. He is deeply missed. His obituary in The Guardian, written by friend and fellow composer Matthew Kaner, can be found at https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/oct/05/alastair-putt-obituary.