University of Chester Professor to lead masterclass at prestigious international music festival
An academic from the University of Chester has been invited to present a lecture and masterclass at a major international festival celebrating one of the 20th century’s most significant composers.
Professor Darren Sproston, Acting Executive Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences and Professor of Music, will contribute to the inaugural Robert Gerhard Biennial 2026, a prestigious international festival celebrating the life, work and legacy of pioneering Catalan composer Robert Gerhard (1896-1970).
Organised by the Robert Gerhard Foundation in partnership with L’Auditori Barcelona, the Museu de la Música and the Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya (ESMUC), the Biennial will take place until November 22, 2026, across Barcelona and Valls. Directed by internationally renowned conductor Edmon Colomer, the festival will bring together performers, composers, scholars and cultural organisations from across the world to explore Gerhard’s extraordinary contribution to 20th-century music and contemporary artistic thought.
The programme includes symphonic and chamber concerts, lectures, exhibitions, masterclasses and research-focused events, making it one of the most significant celebrations of Gerhard’s work ever staged.
Darren, who is internationally recognised as a leading authority on Robert Gerhard’s symphonic music, has been invited to deliver a public lecture and masterclass examining the composer's creative development, musical language and innovative compositional techniques.
Born in Catalonia, Gerhard became one of the most influential composers of his generation. Following the Spanish Civil War, he settled in the UK, where he remained until his death in 1970. His music achieved significant recognition in Britain, including multiple performances at the BBC Proms during the 1960s and he is regarded as an important cultural figure in both Catalonia and the UK.
Darren has published extensively on Gerhard’s use of serial technique, his symphonies and the development of proportional systems derived from pitch to govern musical structure. His latest research examines Gerhard’s score for the film This Sporting Life and its reworking into the concert work Epithalamion. He is also undertaking work on a reconstruction of Gerhard’s unfinished Fifth Symphony, which remained incomplete at the composer’s death and survives in manuscript form within the archives of the University of Cambridge.
The Biennial has been established as a flagship initiative of the Robert Gerhard Foundation, whose mission is to promote understanding of Gerhard’s music and stimulate wider engagement with contemporary and avant-garde musical traditions. Alongside performances of Gerhard’s works, the festival will explore the artistic, intellectual and cultural influences that shaped his career and continue to resonate with audiences today.
As Acting Executive Dean of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, Darren provides strategic leadership across the Faculty, while continuing to contribute to research and teaching as Professor of Music within the University’s School for the Creative Industries.
Darren said: “It is an honour to be invited to participate in the inaugural Robert Gerhard Biennial. Gerhard remains an important and distinctive musical voice of the 20th century and his work continues to offer fresh insights for audiences, performers and researchers alike. The Biennial provides a unique opportunity to celebrate his achievements while encouraging new exploration of his music and ideas.
“To be invited to contribute to an event of this scale and prestige is tremendously rewarding. Robert Gerhard has been the principal focus of my research for many years and it is particularly meaningful to share that work in Catalonia, where his musical journey began. The opportunity to work alongside distinguished musicians, scholars and cultural organisations, under the direction of Edmon Colomer, is genuinely exciting and reflects the growing international interest in Gerhard's remarkable legacy.”
For more information about the Robert Gerhard Biennial 2026, visit the Robert Gerhard Foundation and the Biennial programme page.