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""The most exciting young British composer to have emerged in the 1990s" (The Guardian)
Born in Ayrshire, Scotland in 1959, James MacMillan is one of today’s most successful living composers. His music is notable for its extraordinary directness, energy and emotional power. References to Scottish folk music imbue MacMillan’s work with a strong sense of the vernacular, while strongly-held religious and political beliefs coupled with community concerns inform both the spirit and subject matter of his music.
The successful premiere of his Tryst in 1990 at the St Magnus Festival led to his appointment as Affiliate Composer of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. His works are now performed throughout the world by such orchestras as the New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Pittsburgh Symphony, Boston Symphony, Montreal Symphony, Toronto Symphony, Rotterdam Philharmonic, NHK Symphony, etc.
Among MacMillan’s major works are The Confession of Isobel Gowdie, premiered at the BBC Proms in 1990, Veni, Veni, Emmanuel, the percussion concerto written for Evelyn Glennie which has received more than 200 performances, The World’s Ransoming, commissioned by the London Symphony Orchestra, a cello concerto for Mstislav Rostropovich and the music-theatre piece Búsqueda. He has been a featured composer at the Edinburgh, Huddersfield and Bergen Festivals and was the focus of the South Bank Centre’s Raising Sparks festival in 1997.
Beginning in September 2000, MacMillan became Composer/Conductor of the BBC Philharmonic, succeeding Sir Peter Maxwell Davies in this role. Recent conducting activities around the world have included the Philharmonia, Rotterdam Philharmonic, Sydney Symphony, West Australian Symphony, Residentie Orkest, London Sinfonietta, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group, Ulster Orchestra, Britten Sinfonia, Iceland Symphony, Orchestre National de Montpellier, Orchestre de Picardie, Orquestra Nacional de Porto, Scottish Chamber Orchestra (including a tour of Sweden), Royal Scottish National Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Queensland Symphony and Trondheim Symphony. He has also directed several of his own works on recordings for the BMG and BIS labels.
Conducting highlights of season 2002/3 include the world premiere of a new work with the London Symphony Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic New Music Group, Melbourne Symphony, Queensland Symphony, West Australian Symphony, Norwegian Chamber Orchestra, Orchestre de Bretagne, Jenaer Philharmonie and Britten Sinfonia.
He also continues in his role of Composer-Conductor with the BBC Philharmonic, including conducting at the Huddersfield Festival, recording for Chandos and concerts at the Bridgewater Hall and St Paul’s Cathedral for the City of London Festival. In the summer of 2002 MacMillan will have a residency at the Saratoga Festival in the USA featuring his chamber music and involving coaching, talks and discussion of his music. Future conducting highlights include the NHK Symphony, Sydney Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra players and a developing relationship with the Residentie Orkest.
James MacMillan is represented by Intermusica Artists’ Management Ltd, London. The works of James MacMillan are published by Boosey & Hawkes.
July 2002
 short bio
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James MacMillan composer / conductor
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