Lancelot Beresford Bryan Fairfax (8 February 1925 – 11 January 2014)[1] was an Australian conductor based in the United Kingdom, who was known for his championing of little known or neglected works.[2]
In 1961 he founded the Polyphonia Orchestra, a semi-professional ensemble, as a vehicle for the performance of rarely heard or new music.[4] On 28 February of that year, he directed the Polyphonia in the first live public performance in Britain of Gustav Mahler's massive Symphony No. 3, at St Pancras Town Hall (it had earlier been heard in the UK only on BBC Radio broadcasts). The performance received highly complimentary reviews.[5]
On 24 June 1961,[6] Fairfax led the Polyphonia in the premiere of Havergal Brian's gargantuan Gothic Symphony, which had been completed 34 years earlier in 1927, but previous efforts to perform the work had stalled numerous times due to the colossal forces it requires. This premiere was held in the Central Hall, Westminster, and it was a precursor to the first fully professional performance, on 30 October 1966 at the Royal Albert Hall, under Sir Adrian Boult, which the composer attended.[7][8] Although Havergal Brian did not attend Bryan Fairfax's earlier performance, to express his gratitude he wrote his Symphony No. 18 [nl] especially for the Polyphonia Orchestra's forces and dedicated the work to Fairfax.[9][10] Bryan Fairfax conducted the Polyphonia Orchestra in the world premiere of the 18th Symphony in February 1962, at St. Pancras Town Hall. In June 1975 he directed the first professional performance, a BBC studio recording broadcast.[6]
On 22 November 1963, the composer's 50th birthday, he conducted a concert performance of Benjamin Britten's opera Gloriana, which was the opera's first performance in any form since its inaugural production in 1953.[4][11]
Fairfax was the organiser of the Percy Grainger Festival held in London in 1970, and along with William McKie successfully lobbied the Australian government for financial assistance.[14]
On 21 May 1971 at Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, he conducted the premiere performance of the Hourglass Suite by Cyril Scott.[15]