TED FORD WRITES MUSIC.

Ted Ford is a composer, arranger, pianist and saxophonist based in Manchester, England. He has been composing music since his early teens, initially through his involvement in various school music ensembles. He is already becoming known for his versatility and adaptability, and his compositions draw from a variety of influences, ranging from jazz to contemporary classical and to pop and rock.

 

At present Ted is an undergraduate at the Royal Northern College of Music, where he studies composition with Adam Gorb and Andy Scott. His music has been performed by a number of groups and ensembles. In 2022 his composition Eliminating Distance was performed by the Cenit Ensamble in Pereira, Colombia. He enjoys the challenge of writing for different media. In 2023 he wrote the music for Cerys Lacy’s animation, Curtain Call, and for the play Mortality at the Hope Theatre in London.
 

The big band is one of Ted’s favourite ensembles to write for. He has written for the Wirral-based Out of the Blue Jazz Orchestra, for whom he also occasionally plays. He loves the dynamic nature of this type of music, and has been particularly influenced by the big band writing of Duke Ellington, Jim McNeely and Django Bates.
 

Ted also loves writing choral music, his most recent piece being his setting of the Tantum Ergo, which was sung by the Holy Name Consort Choir in services during Easter week, 2023. He sings as a tenor in St. Ann's Church Choir and is currently writing a Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis. He has a long-standing affection for the English choral tradition and his strongest influences are Herbert Howells, Gerald Finzi and Arvo Part.

 

Ted works quickly, is skilled with Sibelius and Logic Pro, and is comfortable writing in a variety of styles, for many combinations of instruments and/or voices. He is open to commissions and any other project ideas - if you want to work with him, get in touch via the contact form.