Artistic Director & Principal Conductor - Paul Hillier
Paul Hillier - Artistic Director and Principal Conductor
Paul Hillier is from Dorset in England and studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London.
His career has embraced singing, conducting, and writing about music. Earlier in his career he was founding director of the Hilliard Ensemble, and subsequently founded Theatre of Voices. He has taught in the USA at the University of California campuses at Santa Cruz and Davis, and from 1996-2003 was Director of the Early Music Institute at Indiana University. He was Principal Conductor of the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir (2001-2007) and has been Chief Conductor of Ars Nova Copenhagen since 2003.
His recordings, over a hundred CDs including seven solo recitals, have earned worldwide acclaim and won numerous prizes. His books about Arvo Pärt and Steve Reich, together with numerous anthologies of choral music, are published by Oxford University Press. In 2006 he was awarded an OBE for services to choral music. In 2007 he received the Order of the White Star of Estonia, and was awarded a Grammy for Best Choral Recording.
In 2008 he took up the position of Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the National Chamber Choir of Ireland.
For further information please visit www.paulhillier.net
David Brophy - Guest Conductor
David Brophy is the leading Irish conductor of his generation. His career, while primarily based in Ireland, has taken him to many parts of Europe, Africa, America and Canada. He has studied in Ireland, the U.K., and Holland, and was apprentice formerly Apprentice Conductor with the National Chamber Choir of Ireland. David was subsequently the first person to be appointed Assistant Conductor with the RTE National Symphony Orchestra. He is currently Principal Conductor with the RET Concert Orchestra. David's work in the filed of opera includes collaborations with Opera Theatre Company, Opera Ireland, and Lyric Opera.
James Wood - Guest Conductor
James Wood is known for his wide-ranging activities as composer, conductor,
and formerly as viruoso percussionist, and for a close association with an
exceptionally broad spectrum of music from the middle ages to the present day.
In 1981 he founded the highly acclaimed New London Chamber Choir, of which
he was principal conductor for over 25 years until his move to Germany in April
2007. With NLCC he has recorded over 25 CDs of music including Stravinsky,
Janacek, Poulenc, Xenakis, Scelsi, Dallapiccola, Saariaho, Feldman and Wood
himself, as well as music from the fifteenth century.
During the last 10 years he has worked regularly with the Netherlands Radio
Choir, RundfunkChor Berlin, RIAS Kammerchor, SWR Vokalensemble, Champ
d’Action and musikFabrik, and is also in demand as guest conductor from many
international ensembles, choirs and orchestras throughout Europe. James Wood
has enjoyed close working relationships with many distinguished composers
such as Iannis Xenakis, Mauricio Kagel, Kaija Saariaho, György Kurtag,
Alejandro Viñao, Steve Reich, Jonathan Harvey and Karlheinz Stockhausen
Brian MacKay - Guest Conductor
Brian MacKay has wide ranging experience as a conductor, pianist, vocal coach, orchestral oboist, chamber musician and teacher. A graduate of the Royal College of Music in London and the Kodály Institute in Hungary, he studied conducting under Lawrence Leonard, János Fürst, Katalin Kiss and Peter Erdei.
In recent years he has conducted annually at Castle Ward Opera as well as performances with the National Symphony Orchestra, the National Chamber Choir of Ireland, Opera Theatre Company, The Czech Virtuosi, Orchestra of St Cecilia,Fishamble Voices and the newly formed Oriel Ensemble.
He is musical director of the St.George’s Singers and Sinfonia in Belfast and until recently was joint musical director of Enchiriadis Treis in Malahide. As a coach and repetiteur he worked for many years for Opera Theatre Company and Wexford Festival Opera and was a guest coach at the RSAMD and the Liszt Academy, Budapest. He is currently Artistic Director of Irish Vocal Masterclasses.
From 1993 to 2002 Brian was Principal Guest Conductor of the Nairobi Orchestra in Kenya. During two years as a student in Hungary, Brian sang with the professional Hungarian choir ‘Ars Nova’ and was made a life member for his services to the group.
Current engagements include ‘St John Passion’ in the Ulster Hall, ‘Un Ballo in Maschera’ for Castle Ward Opera and a new work celebrating the ‘Flight of the Earls’ by Elaine Agnew with the Irish Chamber Orchestra.
Catherine Simonpietri - Guest Conductor
Born in 1969, she obtained her vocational certificate in musical training at the age of 20. Fascinated by choral conducting, she studied with Pierre Cao at the Royal Conservatory of Luxembourg where she earned a first prize in choral conducting, then at the International Center for Choral Music in Namur (Belgium) from which she graduated with a unanimous first prize. In France, she earned a vocational training certificate in choral conducting whilst continuing to do advanced study with Frieder Bernius, director of the Stuttgart Kammerchor and Barockorchester. She also participated in numerous conducting master classes with John Poole, Erick Ericsson, Hans Michael Beuerle and Michel Corboz. She has directed numerous productions with the Paris Conservatoire, including Bach Cantatas, Handel’s Dixit Dominus, Stravinsky’s Noces... Passionately interested in contemporary artistic creation, in 1998 she founded Sequenza 9.3 vocal ensemble. She is currently a professor of choral conducting at the National Conservatory of Aubervilliers-La Courneuve as well as at the Paris Conservatoire.(Photograph: Willy Vainqueur)
Paul Hillier is from Dorset in England and studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London.His career has embraced singing, conducting, and writing about music. Earlier in his career he was founding director of the Hilliard Ensemble, and subsequently founded Theatre of Voices. He has taught in the USA at the University of California campuses at Santa Cruz and Davis, and from 1996-2003 was Director of the Early Music Institute at Indiana University. He was Principal Conductor of the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir (2001-2007) and has been Chief Conductor of Ars Nova Copenhagen since 2003.
His recordings, over a hundred CDs including seven solo recitals, have earned worldwide acclaim and won numerous prizes. His books about Arvo Pärt and Steve Reich, together with numerous anthologies of choral music, are published by Oxford University Press. In 2006 he was awarded an OBE for services to choral music. In 2007 he received the Order of the White Star of Estonia, and was awarded a Grammy for Best Choral Recording.
In 2008 he took up the position of Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the National Chamber Choir of Ireland.
For further information please visit www.paulhillier.net
David Brophy - Guest Conductor
David Brophy is the leading Irish conductor of his generation. His career, while primarily based in Ireland, has taken him to many parts of Europe, Africa, America and Canada. He has studied in Ireland, the U.K., and Holland, and was apprentice formerly Apprentice Conductor with the National Chamber Choir of Ireland. David was subsequently the first person to be appointed Assistant Conductor with the RTE National Symphony Orchestra. He is currently Principal Conductor with the RET Concert Orchestra. David's work in the filed of opera includes collaborations with Opera Theatre Company, Opera Ireland, and Lyric Opera.
James Wood - Guest Conductor
James Wood is known for his wide-ranging activities as composer, conductor,and formerly as viruoso percussionist, and for a close association with an
exceptionally broad spectrum of music from the middle ages to the present day.
In 1981 he founded the highly acclaimed New London Chamber Choir, of which
he was principal conductor for over 25 years until his move to Germany in April
2007. With NLCC he has recorded over 25 CDs of music including Stravinsky,
Janacek, Poulenc, Xenakis, Scelsi, Dallapiccola, Saariaho, Feldman and Wood
himself, as well as music from the fifteenth century.
During the last 10 years he has worked regularly with the Netherlands Radio
Choir, RundfunkChor Berlin, RIAS Kammerchor, SWR Vokalensemble, Champ
d’Action and musikFabrik, and is also in demand as guest conductor from many
international ensembles, choirs and orchestras throughout Europe. James Wood
has enjoyed close working relationships with many distinguished composers
such as Iannis Xenakis, Mauricio Kagel, Kaija Saariaho, György Kurtag,
Alejandro Viñao, Steve Reich, Jonathan Harvey and Karlheinz Stockhausen
Brian MacKay - Guest Conductor
Brian MacKay has wide ranging experience as a conductor, pianist, vocal coach, orchestral oboist, chamber musician and teacher. A graduate of the Royal College of Music in London and the Kodály Institute in Hungary, he studied conducting under Lawrence Leonard, János Fürst, Katalin Kiss and Peter Erdei.In recent years he has conducted annually at Castle Ward Opera as well as performances with the National Symphony Orchestra, the National Chamber Choir of Ireland, Opera Theatre Company, The Czech Virtuosi, Orchestra of St Cecilia,Fishamble Voices and the newly formed Oriel Ensemble.
He is musical director of the St.George’s Singers and Sinfonia in Belfast and until recently was joint musical director of Enchiriadis Treis in Malahide. As a coach and repetiteur he worked for many years for Opera Theatre Company and Wexford Festival Opera and was a guest coach at the RSAMD and the Liszt Academy, Budapest. He is currently Artistic Director of Irish Vocal Masterclasses.
From 1993 to 2002 Brian was Principal Guest Conductor of the Nairobi Orchestra in Kenya. During two years as a student in Hungary, Brian sang with the professional Hungarian choir ‘Ars Nova’ and was made a life member for his services to the group.
Current engagements include ‘St John Passion’ in the Ulster Hall, ‘Un Ballo in Maschera’ for Castle Ward Opera and a new work celebrating the ‘Flight of the Earls’ by Elaine Agnew with the Irish Chamber Orchestra.
Catherine Simonpietri - Guest Conductor
Born in 1969, she obtained her vocational certificate in musical training at the age of 20. Fascinated by choral conducting, she studied with Pierre Cao at the Royal Conservatory of Luxembourg where she earned a first prize in choral conducting, then at the International Center for Choral Music in Namur (Belgium) from which she graduated with a unanimous first prize. In France, she earned a vocational training certificate in choral conducting whilst continuing to do advanced study with Frieder Bernius, director of the Stuttgart Kammerchor and Barockorchester. She also participated in numerous conducting master classes with John Poole, Erick Ericsson, Hans Michael Beuerle and Michel Corboz. She has directed numerous productions with the Paris Conservatoire, including Bach Cantatas, Handel’s Dixit Dominus, Stravinsky’s Noces... Passionately interested in contemporary artistic creation, in 1998 she founded Sequenza 9.3 vocal ensemble. She is currently a professor of choral conducting at the National Conservatory of Aubervilliers-La Courneuve as well as at the Paris Conservatoire.(Photograph: Willy Vainqueur)