About
Qualifications
2022-2024 | MMus in Composition | Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (studied with Bekah Simms and Stuart MacRae)
2018-2022 | BMus (Hons) in Music (1st Class Honours) | University of Glasgow
2016-2018 | Scottish National Qualifications (Adv. Higher: A, Higher: AAABBC) | Trinity High School (Rutherglen)
2015-2019 | ABRSM Exams | Grade 8 Trumpet (Merit), Grade 5 Piano (Distinction), Grade 5 Music Theory (Distinction)
Awards and Recognition
Winner:
- RSNO Film Composers Lab 2023-24
- Walter and Dinah Wolfe Composition Prize 2023-24
Nomination:
- Best Score – The Monthly Film Festival (November 2023) for “Dawn” dir. Michael Kearney
Runner-up:
- Dinah Wolfe Composition Prize 2022-23
David Ford is an award-winning Scottish composer and musician based in Glasgow, who writes film and concert music for a diverse range of ensembles. Described as ‘ethereal’ by the UK Film Review, his music primarily focuses on timbre and orchestration, with close reference to stories, film and place.
In the past, David has worked with music festivals such as The Night With..., Cantilena, Sound and Plug Festivals, whilst working with groups such as the RSNO, Hebrides Ensemble, United Strings of Europe, GAIA Duo, St Andrew’s Intersections and the University of Glasgow Concert Band. Recently selected as winner of the RSNO Film Composers’ Lab 23-24, his film score for ‘Crow Moon’ (animation Selina Wagner) will be performed by RSNO at The Music of John Williams concerts in May 2025 at Dundee Caird Hall, Edinburgh Usher Hall and Glasgow Royal Concert Hall. Other notable achievements include winning the 2023-24 Walter and Dinah Wolfe composition prize, Best Score nomination by The Monthly Film Festival, being part of the Scottish delegation at UNM Festival Sweden 2024 and composer residency with the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland Brass Department.
Graduating in 2024 from his Masters of Music (MMus) at Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, he studied under the guidance of Bekah Simms and Stuart MacRae. Additionally he’s received tuition from Patrick Doyle, James MacMillan and Danai Kokogia. David’s upcoming projects include the Nordic Music Days composer’s exchange, composing for Con Anima choir with Sound Scotland and future cross disciplinarily work with film scoring and new music.
About | Biography | Education – David Ford Composer
Education
David holds a Masters of Music (MMus) in composition from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and studied under the guidance of Bekah Simms and Stuart MacRae. He also received a First-Class Honours Bachelor of Music (BMus) degree from the University of Glasgow where he studied composition under Drew Hammond. Outside higher education, he received film scoring tuition from Patrick Doyle and Danai Kokogia as part of the RSNO Film Composers’ Lab 2023-24. In addition, he took part in Sound Scotland’s Con Anima choir development program and studied choir composition under James Weeks. David is also proficient in Trumpet, receiving tuition from Mark O’Keeffe and actively performs in various ensembles in both professional and community settings, such as with the Glasgow Sinfonia.
In his postgraduate, David was awarded the Composer Residency of the RCS Brass Department, David worked closely within and outside the conservatoire on various orchestral, chamber, film and electronic projects whilst receiving 1 to 1 tuition from visiting professors such as James MacMillan and Errollyn Wallen. He also won the Walter and Dinah Wolfe Prize for Composition 2023-24 and received numerous commissions for The Night With… Festival, Cantilena Festival and Plug New Music Festivals. David particularly worked closely with the RCS Film department as the composer of student films, one of which receiving nomination for Best Score in the Monthly Film Festival.
In his undergraduate, David took classes in composition, orchestration, counterpoint, performance, film music, Jazz and Blues, sonic arts and analysis. He received multiple opportunities to have his work performed not only by students but also the University of Glasgow Chapel, Glasgow University Music Club, Kelvin Ensemble and workshop sessions with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO). He additionally held the position of principal trumpet for 4 years with the Kelvin Ensemble orchestra and was elected as one of their Brass, Woodwind Percussion (BWP) Managers for a further 2 years.
Upbringing
Born in Glasgow, Scotland (2000), David Ford grew up in Cambuslang with an interest for detail, arts, films and nature. His first introduction to music was in primary school at the age of 10, where he was offered trumpet lessons through the South Lanarkshire Instrumental Music Service (IMS). Tutored by James McAleenan, he began to discover a passion for music and was soon invited to become a member of the South Lanarkshire Orchestral Society (SLOS), West of Scotland Schools Symphony Orchestra (WSSO), South Lanarkshire Schools Big Band and Trinity and Stonelaw High School Wind Bands. During this time, he began to have a fascination for music in film and after being gifted some manuscript paper he started to compose his own music. Also taking up piano, he continued writing music and performing trumpet eventually achieving his ABRSM Grade 8 Trumpet and Grade 5 Distinction in both Piano and Music theory. In addition, he undertook various development opportunities both for trumpet and composition such as the RSNO Notes from Scotland course. In 2018 he was accepted onto the Bachelor of Music with Honours (BMus, Hons) course at the University of Glasgow, where he truly started to discover composition.
In his undergraduate, David took classes in composition, orchestration, counterpoint, performance, film music, Jazz and Blues, Sonic Arts and analysis. Studying composition under Drew Hammond, he began to develop his skills as a composer developing his voice in music. He received multiple opportunities to have his work performed not only by students but also the University of Glasgow Chapel, Glasgow University Music Club, Kelvin Ensemble and workshop sessions with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO). Outside of composition David received trumpet tuition from Mark O’Keeffe (BBC SSO) and took part in numerous performing opportunities with students and ensembles. In particular he became principal trumpet of the Kelvin Ensemble for 4 years and was elected as one of their Brass, Woodwind Percussion (BWP) Manager for a further 2 years. This role involved working closely with the section and the committee to provide an organised, safe and inclusive experience for members, whilst organising and auditioning players, selecting repertoire, hiring instruments and additional players, assisting with the librarian and monitoring attendance. He also became the orchestra’s Lead Audio Engineer during 2020 editing and assembling together separate recordings using a click-track for the orchestra’s virtual concert. In his final years, he specialised in composition and his dissertation covered the development of film music practices by comparing King Kong (1933) with the 2005 remake. David graduated his BMus degree 2022 achieving a First Class with Honours. Wanting to specialise further, he was accepted onto the Masters of Music (MMus) course at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.