Steve has been writing songs since 1993. His started writing classical music in 2009, starting with a string quartet written for his father, an amateur ‘cellist. Since 2013 he has focused on his major new choral work, ‘Blue Pearl: A One World Oratorio’.
Classical music, including choral
Blue Pearl : A One World Oratorio. For choir, soloists and orchestra. Completed in 2019. World Premiere will be on 14.5.2022, with the London Mozart Players and Excelsis Chamber Choir conducted by Rob Lewis, at St Giles’ Cripplegate, London.
String Quartet in D, world premiere – 2009, performed by the Divertimento Quartet in Stoke Gabriel, Devon.
Summer Song – for violin and piano, 2014. First performed at Dartington Summer School 2014.
Songs
Blue Pearl (2003) . Performed on tour by Maddy Prior & the Carnival Band, recorded by them on their Ringing The Changes album, and also by the Carnival Band on their Around The World album.
The Dancing Robin (2014). A setting of a traditional text from the Baring-Gould collection (folk songs collected in Devon). Performed on tour by Maddy Prior & the Carnival Band.
The Darkling Thrush. Setting of the poem by Thomas Hardy, written for, and performed by, Maddy Prior & the Carnival Band.
Songs and arrangements for Blue Jewel’s two albums: Dart Songs (2010) and John Smart’s Bottle (2012) – see www.bluejewel.info/blue-jewel-cds/.
Steve’s folk duo, Cosgrave & Banks, perform two of Steve’s songs, Into The Day, and Doorway To Heaven. The former is on their album, Warp & Weft.
Film Music
Steve has written music for three of his father, John Banks’s films of butterflies of the world:
In The Shadow of Kanchenjunga (2008) – arrangement of a traditional folk song from Sikkim, 
performed by the Carnival Band.
Gilded Butterflies (2012) – performed and recorded by Steve at his Devon studio.
Ghana’s Other Gold (2015) – performed and recorded by Steve at his Devon studio
These three, along with eight other wonderful films of the world’s butterflies can be watched free at www.cinebutterflies.com
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© Steve Banks 2017