Staff profile
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Job title: Senior Lecturer
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Dept: Music and Performing Arts
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Tel:
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Campus: Canterbury
MA, FRAM, ARAM, DipRAM, LRAM, LTCL
Since studying at Cambridge University and the Royal Academy of Music with John White, Martin Outram has enjoyed a wide ranging career as quartet player, soloist and teacher.
His career with the Maggini Quartet has taken him to prestigious venues throughout North America, the Far East and many European countries. As a member of the group he has won international prizes for recordings, including a Diapason d'Or and a Gramophone Award.
In addition, Martin appears frequently as a soloist. His repertoire embraces the major works for viola, but his programmes often include rarely heard pieces, particularly by British composers. Several works have been written for him, notably concertos by Adam Gorb and David Gow. Martin made his Royal Festival Hall solo debut in 1992 in a performance of Mozart's Sinfonia Concertante with the London Mozart Players and has since performed concertos at major festivals and venues throughout the UK.
He gave the broadcast premiere of Sir Peter Maxwell Davies' Strathclyde Concerto No.5 with the composer conducting, the first concert performance of Britten's Portrait No.2 at St. John's, Smith Square, London, and went on to tour the work with Martyn Brabbins and Sinfonia 21 in Russia. Recent engagements included a rare performance of the Maconchy Romanza with the Ambache Chamber Orchestra and performances of the Walton and Lars-Erik Larsson concertos and he was the soloist in the first European performance for 75 years of York Bowen's Viola Concerto, with Ronald Corp and the New London Orchestra. He has appeared many times as soloist with the Britten Sinfonia both in the UK and abroad, and made his South American solo debut with them in 2007.
Martin performs in recital with Julian Rolton. Together they have performed widely and appear on several discs for Naxos. Their performances have included highly acclaimed recitals at many international viola congresses. Martin served on the jury for the 2003 Lionel Tertis International Viola Competition and has been invited back to give a recital and masterclass in 2009. In 2006, his recording of all the music for viola and piano by Bax with Julian Rolton for the Naxos label received a five-star rating by the BBC Music magazine.
Martin Outram is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music, where he has been a professor since 1984. He is also an Honorary Fellow of Canterbury Christ Church University and Brunel University. He has taught and coached at major conservatoires and universities in Britain, Norway, Sweden and America, and has given masterclasses in Germany. He plays on a very fine viola made by Hieronymus Amati in 1628.
Martin has a wide-ranging role at CCCU, from coaching and directing ensembles to encouraging new composition and integration of music within the university and beyond. He is also involved in research, particularly relating to the string quartet and development of the literature for viola. He has wide experience as an external examiner for several of the senior British conservatoires, and is in demand as an adjudicator at major competitions.