Sir James Galway Biography Flute
One of the greatest flute players of all time, Sir James Galway is hailed as the world’s supreme interpreter of anything related to the classical flute. He is a performer who has been able to transcend any and all types of musical boundaries. Selling over 30 million recordings worldwide, Galway spends a lot of his time touring internationally, making frequent appearances on television, promotes the are of playing the flute, and even does passionate work helping in the field of music education.
Having been a household name for the past few decades, his extensive interpretations of the flute have been to span a wide range of musical genres, from classical interpretations, all the way to higher profiled commissions. He is considered to be the standard in relationship to the modern flautists. On top of that, Galway has also had the opportunities to collaborate on some of the most prestigious soundtracks of all time, such as The Lord of the Rings series, and has even partnered with some of the best musical artists of all time, those to include Ray Charles, Sir Elton John, Stevie Wonder, and Joni Mitchell. It is the amount of diversity that Galway has that is able to reflect his diverse musical range, as well as help to establish him as one of the top artists in the industry.
Originally from Northern Ireland, James Galway started his flute studies in the town of Belfast. At only the age of 16 years old, he would win a scholarship to attend the Royal College of Music, which would find him attending the Guildhall School of Music, as well as Paris Conservatoire. When Galway was 21, he would start his orchestral career by joining with London’s major symphonic and opera orchestras.
Moving forward to 1969, Galway would earn the position of solo flautist while playing with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, prior to establishing a solo career as a flautist in 1975. Having over 88 albums to his name, Galway has recorded with major studios that include Deutsche Grammophon, Sony Classic, and his most recent label, RTE Label.
With a jam packed international touring schedule, Galway still finds time to make feature appearances at major festivals and venues, as well as many of the world’s top ranked conductors and orchestras. Sir James Galway has plans to perform major recitals and concert tours in the UK, Italy, France, Ireland, Switzerland, and the United States in the upcoming year.
On a more personal level, Galway is one of the strongest supporters of charitable causes and the arts, devoting much of his limited amount of free time to that of enhancing musical education, as well as sharing his experiences and wisdom with the next generation of music lovers.
While Sir James Galway has had a long and successful career, it does not appear as though there is an end in sight for him. With a passion for helping and educating other music lovers, Sir James Galway really is a true musical icon.
