Goodman was born in
Guildford, studied at the
Royal College of Music, and became a Fellow of the
Royal College of Organists and Associate of the Royal College of Music. He has also served as Director of Music at the
University of Kent in
Canterbury and Director of
Early music Studies at the
Royal Academy of Music. As a violinist and
concertmaster, he played from 1975 to 1985 under the baton of
Iván Fischer,
John Eliot Gardiner,
Charles Mackerras,
Roger Norrington, and
Simon Rattle (at
Glyndebourne Opera). He was
viola d'amore soloist with the
Academy of St Martin in the Fields under
Neville Marriner and the
Philharmonia Orchestra under
Vladimir Ashkenazy. He has also played as soloist on
baroque violin with
Frans Brüggen,
Philippe Herreweghe,
Christopher Hogwood,
René Jacobs,
Trevor Pinnock and
Ton Koopman. In July 1999 Goodman conducted the premiere of Jonas Forssell's
Trädgården (The Garden) at the
Drottningholm theatre in Stockholm, the first new opera to be premiered there in modern times. As a conductor, Roy Goodman is known for his special expertise with
early music, which he often directed from the violin,
harpsichord or
organ. He was conductor of
Reading Youth Orchestra (1974–1976), founder and director of the Brandenburg Consort (1975–2001), co-director of the
Parley of Instruments (1979–1986), Principal Conductor of the
Hanover Band (1986–1994) and Music Director of the
European Union Baroque Orchestra (1989–2004). He is Principal Guest Conductor of the
English Chamber Orchestra and Director Emeritus of the European Union Baroque Orchestra. He has served as Guest Conductor with over 100 other orchestras, ensembles, and opera companies. In 2006 he made his debut with the
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in
Amsterdam and returned to
San Francisco Opera to conduct a new production of
Mozart’s
The Marriage of Figaro. As a conductor Goodman has made over 120 recordings ranging from
Monteverdi to
Copland. Goodman has also directed more than forty world premières of contemporary music. In 2003, Goodman pleaded guilty to operating his 24 foot trailer-sailer yacht Royana while under the
influence of alcohol. Goodman ran this small yacht aground on
Calshot Spit, near Southampton. Roy Goodman made his New Zealand debut in 2007, performing a series of Baroque concerts. Following the enthusiastic response of audiences and critics, he accepted the position of Principal Guest Conductor for the
Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, which he held until 2011. In 2010, he made his debut at the Sydney Opera House with three concerts, and in 2011 he was affectionately named the "
Rafa Nadal of conductors" by
Radio New Zealand. He has three children and five grandchildren. == References ==