Gwydion Brooke

Gwydion Brooke (16 February 1912 – 27 March 2005) was the principal bassoonist of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and a member of its "Royal Family" of wind instrumentalists, along with Jack Brymer (clarinet), Dennis Brain (horn), Richard Walton (trumpet), Terence MacDonagh (oboe), and Gerald Jackson (flute)。Born Frederick James Gwydion Holbrooke, he was the son of the composer Joseph Holbrooke. Upon the death of Sir Thomas Beecham in 1961, Walter Legge hired Brooke as the principal bassoonist of the Philharmonia Orchestra, where he remained until his retirement in 1979. His recordings include one of the Mozart bassoon concerto with Beecham and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Weber bassoon concerto with Sir Malcolm Sargent and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.Gwydion Brooke is revered[who?] as the doyen of British 20th century bassoonists, with an unsurpassed technique.