Lloyd Buck

Lloyd studied piano at the Royal College of Music in London, and later at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, where he graduated with distinction under the tutorledge of Paul Janes. He has performed at many prestigious venues including St Martin in the Fields and St James' Piccadilly in London, the Colston Hall and St George’s Brandon Hill in Bristol, and the Symphony Hall in Birmingham.

He recorded his debut CD of piano music by Bortkiewicz in 2008 with Amemptos Music to great critical acclaim, and has recently recorded a disc of solo piano music by Alkan, whilst includes two premiere recordings, one of which being the legendary 'Scherzo Focoso', thought for many years to be virtually unplayable.

As a composer, Lloyd writes in a tonal style and has been influenced by composers from the Italian Renaissance to the late romantics. He firmly believes in writing music that appeals to audiences, in which melody and harmony are essential components. In 2010 his setting of 'Dixit Maria' for a capella choir was professionally recorded for release on Amemptos Music's 'Excelsior' CD, and has met great critical acclaim.

To celebrate The Barnby Choir’s 75th Anniversary, Lloyd was commissioned to write an uplifting anthem on text which was written by the choir’s Chair, Dave Tonks. The resulting work for chorus and orchestra, ‘Let the Music Sound!’ was premiered to great aclaim on 26th March, 2022 in Bramhall.

Lloyd was also commissioned by Ellesmere Port Music Society to write a work celebrating the end of the COVID-19 pandemic. The brief was to celebrate a return to the light after the darkness of the covid years, and to celebrate the joy that the choir was able to return to singing live together. ‘We celebrate the Light’ was premiered in Ellesmere Port on 23rd April 2022, and moved members of the choir to tears.

Lloyd’s style is very much tonal, and he draws inspiration from music of the romantic period, principally the harmonic language of Chopin and Rachmaninoff. He believes that it is important to write music which is accessible and appeals to audiences, in which melody and harmony are essential components.

In addition to writing original compositions, Lloyd enjoys arranging orchestral and instrumental music for the piano, his aim being to retain as much of the spirit of the original as possible when the work is transferred to the piano. Has has made arrangements of Vivaldi’s ‘Four Seasons’, several symphonies by Mozart, and well as a number of song transcriptions by a varied selection of composers.