Paul Hillier
Encyclopedia
Paul Douglas Hillier is a conductor
, music director and baritone
. He specializes in early music
and contemporary art music, especially that by composers Steve Reich
and Arvo Pärt
. He studied at Magdalen College, Oxford
and the Guildhall School of Music, beginning his professional career while a vicar-scholar
at St Paul's Cathedral
, London
. His concert début was in 1974 in London's Purcell Room
.
along with fellow vicar-scholar Paul Elliott and counter-tenor David James. Elliott had also attended Magdalen College around the same time as Hillier. Hillier remained the director of the ensemble until 1989, when he founded Theatre of Voices
. In addition to early music, this group explores more contemporary repertoire.
Hillier later became Director of the Early Music Institute at the Indiana University
Jacobs School of Music
and, at the same time, of the Pro Arte Singers, remaining so until he left the Institute in 2003. The Pro Arte Singers joined the Theatre of Voices in a couple of recordings. In 2001, he became the Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir
.
Since 2003, Hillier has been Chief Conductor of Ars Nova Copenhagen. In 2008, was appointed Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the National Chamber Choir of Ireland.
Hillier has recorded a number of solo albums, some with harpist Andrew Lawrence-King
, on the Harmonia Mundi
, ECM, EMI, Finlandia and Hyperion
labels.
's Early Music Institute.
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
, music director and baritone
Baritone
Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...
. He specializes in early music
Early music
Early music is generally understood as comprising all music from the earliest times up to the Renaissance. However, today this term has come to include "any music for which a historically appropriate style of performance must be reconstructed on the basis of surviving scores, treatises,...
and contemporary art music, especially that by composers Steve Reich
Steve Reich
Stephen Michael "Steve" Reich is an American composer who together with La Monte Young, Terry Riley, and Philip Glass is a pioneering composer of minimal music...
and Arvo Pärt
Arvo Pärt
Arvo Pärt is an Estonian classical composer and one of the most prominent living composers of sacred music. Since the late 1970s, Pärt has worked in a minimalist style that employs his self-made compositional technique, tintinnabuli. His music also finds its inspiration and influence from...
. He studied at Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College, Oxford
Magdalen College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2006 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £153 million. Magdalen is currently top of the Norrington Table after over half of its 2010 finalists received first-class degrees, a record...
and the Guildhall School of Music, beginning his professional career while a vicar-scholar
Lay clerk
A lay clerk, also known as a lay vicar, song man or a vicar choral, is a professional adult singer in a Cathedral or collegiate choir in the United Kingdom. The Vicars Choral were substitutes for the Canons...
at St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral, London, is a Church of England cathedral and seat of the Bishop of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. St Paul's sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the mother...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. His concert début was in 1974 in London's Purcell Room
Purcell Room
The Purcell Room is a concert and performance venue which forms part of the Southbank Centre, one of central London's leading cultural complexes. It is named after the 17th century English composer Henry Purcell and has 370 seats....
.
Ensembles
In 1974, Hillier co-founded The Hilliard EnsembleHilliard Ensemble
The Hilliard Ensemble is a British male vocal quartet originally devoted to the performance of early music. Founded in 1974, the group is named after the Elizabethan miniaturist painter Nicholas Hilliard....
along with fellow vicar-scholar Paul Elliott and counter-tenor David James. Elliott had also attended Magdalen College around the same time as Hillier. Hillier remained the director of the ensemble until 1989, when he founded Theatre of Voices
Theatre of Voices
Theatre of Voices is a vocal ensemble founded by baritone Paul Hillier in 1992; it focuses on early music and new music.The ensemble was formed by Paul Hillier while he was teaching at the University of California, Davis, as an avenue to performing more contemporary music while his other group, the...
. In addition to early music, this group explores more contemporary repertoire.
Hillier later became Director of the Early Music Institute at the Indiana University
Indiana University Bloomington
Indiana University Bloomington is a public research university located in Bloomington, Indiana, in the United States. IU Bloomington is the flagship campus of the Indiana University system. Being the flagship campus, IU Bloomington is often referred to simply as IU or Indiana...
Jacobs School of Music
Jacobs School of Music
The Jacobs School of Music of Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana, is a music conservatory established in 1921. Until 2005, it was known as the Indiana University School of Music...
and, at the same time, of the Pro Arte Singers, remaining so until he left the Institute in 2003. The Pro Arte Singers joined the Theatre of Voices in a couple of recordings. In 2001, he became the Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir
Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir
The Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir is a professional choir based in Estonia. It was founded in 1981 by Tõnu Kaljuste, who was its conductor for twenty years. In 2001, Paul Hillier followed Kaljuste's tenure, becoming the EPCC's principal conductor and artistic director until September 2008,...
.
Since 2003, Hillier has been Chief Conductor of Ars Nova Copenhagen. In 2008, was appointed Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the National Chamber Choir of Ireland.
Hillier has recorded a number of solo albums, some with harpist Andrew Lawrence-King
Andrew Lawrence-King
Andrew Lawrence-King is a harpist and early music specialist, and is currently the director of The Harp Consort...
, on the Harmonia Mundi
Harmonia Mundi
Harmonia Mundi is an independent music record label founded in 1958 by Bernard Coutaz in Arles . The Latin phrase means "world harmony"....
, ECM, EMI, Finlandia and Hyperion
Hyperion
-Computing:* Hyperion , an early portable computer* Hyperion Entertainment, a computer game producer* Hyperion Solutions, a business software company owned by Oracle* Hyperion, an IRC daemon previously used by the Freenode IRC network-In fiction:...
labels.
Academic appointments
Starting in 1980, Hillier has held a variety of academic appointments over the years, most recently as Director of Indiana University BloomingtonIndiana University Bloomington
Indiana University Bloomington is a public research university located in Bloomington, Indiana, in the United States. IU Bloomington is the flagship campus of the Indiana University system. Being the flagship campus, IU Bloomington is often referred to simply as IU or Indiana...
's Early Music Institute.
Publications
- The Catch Book (2005), Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-343649-3, a collection of catches (comic roundRound (music)A round is a musical composition in which two or more voices sing exactly the same melody , but with each voice beginning at different times so that different parts of the melody coincide in the different voices, but nevertheless fit harmoniously together...
s) edited by Hillier. - A Josquin Anthology (2005), Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-353218-2, a collection of choral pieces by RenaissanceRenaissance musicRenaissance music is European music written during the Renaissance. Defining the beginning of the musical era is difficult, given that its defining characteristics were adopted only gradually; musicologists have placed its beginnings from as early as 1300 to as late as the 1470s.Literally meaning...
composer Josquin Des PrezJosquin Des PrezJosquin des Prez [Josquin Lebloitte dit Desprez] , often referred to simply as Josquin, was a Franco-Flemish composer of the Renaissance...
, edited by Ross Duffin and Hillier. - Writing on Music, 1965–2000 (2002), Oxford University PressOxford University PressOxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
, ISBN 0-19-511171-0, a collection of writings by composer Steve Reich, edited by Hillier. - Arvo Pärt (1997), Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-816616-8, The only English-language biography of EstoniaEstoniaEstonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
n composer Arvo PärtArvo PärtArvo Pärt is an Estonian classical composer and one of the most prominent living composers of sacred music. Since the late 1970s, Pärt has worked in a minimalist style that employs his self-made compositional technique, tintinnabuli. His music also finds its inspiration and influence from...
. - English Romantic Partsongs (1986), Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-343650-7, a collection of songs edited by Hillier.
- 300 Years of English Partsongs: Glees, Rounds, Catches, Partsongs 1600-1900 (1983), Faber & Faber, ISBN 0-571-10045-7, a collection of music edited by Hillier.