Introduction
William Owen "Will" Gregory (born (1959-09-17)17 September 1959) is an English musician and record producer. He is best known as the lead keyboardist, producer, and composer of the electronic music duo Goldfrapp.
Early life
Gregory was born in Bristol, the son of an actress and an opera chorus-line singer. He was a Western orchestral / chamber music student at the University of York.
Career
In the 1980s, Gregory predominantly recorded and toured with Tears for Fears.
In the 1990s, Gregory performed with artists including Peter Gabriel, The Cure, and Portishead, as well as playing oboe for Tori Amos and recording with Paula Rae Gibson. In 1991, he played saxophone with the London Sinfonietta for the Paris début of John Adams's opera Nixon in China. In 1999, vocalist Alison Goldfrapp and Gregory formed the duo Goldfrapp. The pairing has led to international critical, popular, and commercial success.
In the 2000s, as well as Goldfrapp activities, he played saxophone on Portishead's 2008 album Third (on the tracks "Magic Doors" and "Threads").
On 31 March 2011, Gregory's first opera, Piccard in Space, premiered at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, London. The Hattie Naylor's libretto, focused on Auguste Piccard/Paul Kipfer's first balloon ascent, and the theories of Albert Einstein and Isaac Newton, both of whom are characterized in the drama. The reviews were generally negative.
On 11 March 2013, a newly commissioned baroquesque Gregory work (for orchestra and Moog, based on a sarabande of Johann Sebastian Bach) was performed at The Roundhouse in London. The performance was part of BBC Radio 3's Baroque Remixed series, which also included a piece by Matthew Herbert.
Gregory's other saxophone work includes playing with Apollo Saxophone Quartet, Spiritualized, and Michael Nyman.
Discography
with Tears for Fears
- Songs from the Big Chair (1985)
with Tori Amos
- Little Earthquakes (1992)
with Peter Gabriel
- OVO (2000)
- Up (2002)
- Long Walk Home: Music from the Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002)
with Portishead
- Roseland NYC Live (1998)
- Third (2008)
with other artists
- Four Ways to Cook a Goose – Loggerheads (1987)
- Gas Giants – Gas Giants (1994)
Film Soundtracks
- I.D. (1995)