Cameron’s music regularly draws inspiration from natural landscapes, aspects of momentum, as well as his own Welsh heritage and folklore. From orchestral collaborations with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales (BBC NOW) and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, to intimate chamber projects with Fenella Humphreys, Riot Ensemble and Mahan Esfahani, Cameron has enjoyed collaborating with a vibrant range of professional musicians across the UK. This has led to his work being broadcast on BBC Radio 3, as well as receiving commissions and premieres at the Cheltenham, Three Choirs and Spitalfields Music Festivals.

Q&A with the composer...

Hi Cameron. Landscape is a big inspiration for you. Are you a keen hiker?

Hi, I am definitely a keen walker, and occasional hiker - walks often help clear my head when I get stuck on a composition problem! As I live in Llangollen, there are plenty of local walks, whether that is the down the canal towpath or walking up to the hill fort. In fact, one of my orchestral pieces, was based on the same hillfort and was premiered a year ago by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales.

You were commissioned to compose a new set of songs for the opening concert of this year’s Cheltenham Music Festival! Where do you begin with a commission like that?

Yes! What an incredibly exciting opportunity - I couldn’t quite believe it given the reputation of the festival. I approach vocal music quite differently to how I would compose a string quartet or an orchestral piece. My three starting points would be the thematic brief, specific voice type (a rich bass voice will have a radically different quality to a light soprano), and the choice in lyrical text.

When it came to the Cheltenham commission, I had the theme of Knights and Legends to respond too. I had great fun reading different texts (incl. prose, poems, articles, interviews!) that could complement each other as part of a short song cycle.

The challenge is creating a melody that works in harmony with multiple texts. Occasionally, there might be one-syllable too long or short, or occasionally the emotional high-points of a text might not correlate to the musical climax. It’s all a continuous give and take situation, and it’s our job as composers to navigate this and find the common ground between the two. It’s why I find writing vocal music fascinating!

It’s clear that you’re inspired by folklore – have you got a favourite character from Welsh folklore and if so, what makes them stand out for you?

I have always believed music is about storytelling, but folklore has been a recent interest of mine as a composer. As someone who grew up in Corwen, I took for granted the rich history and culture in North Wales and just absorbed it like a sponge. As I have become more settled in what I’m about as a composer, I have begun to draw from those stories, historical or otherwise.

For me, my favourite has got to be Owain Glyndŵr. While he isn’t a folklore character, a lot of stories about him do blur the lines between historical fact and fiction. As a child, I just remember all the stories of battles between the English and Welsh and how he became a figure for Welsh independence.