Composer Brochure | Works

BIOGRAPHY
Teaches his first composers’ course on Hoy with Peter
Maxwell Davies.
1990 Proms premiere of The Confession of Isobel Gowdie with
the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra under Jerzy
Maksymiuk: its telecast boosts composer’s profile
throughout UK. Búsqueda is performed at the Edinburgh
Festival with Diana Rigg. Featured composer at Musica
Nova in Glasgow where The Berserking is premiered by
Peter Donohoe.
1991 Conducts The Confession of Isobel Gowdie with
Philharmonia Orchestra in London and is subsequently
appointed Visiting Composer. Tuireadh, written in response
to the Piper Alpha oilrig disaster, is premiered at the
St Magnus Festival by the Allegri Quartet and James
Campbell. Featured composer at Huddersfield
Contemporary Music Festival. Records the old Tryst
song with his heroes of folk music, the Whistlebinkies.
Attends performance of John Clifford’s play Inès de Castro
and begins planning an opera.
1992 Tryst tours England on the Contemporary Music Network.
Writes Veni, Veni, Emmanuel for percussionist Eveyln
Glennie which is premiered at the BBC Proms. Launches
the Philharmonia’s Music of Today series of early evening
concerts in London (until 2002), developing his interest in
music beyond the central European mainstream, including
Celtic, Nordic and Far Eastern composers, and those
emerging from behind the former Iron Curtain.
1993 Featured composer at the Edinburgh Festival with 18
works performed, including premiere of trumpet
concerto Epiclesis, a double-bill of Búsqueda and Visitatio
Sepulchri, and Sinfonietta and The Confession of Isobel
Gowdie conducted by Leonard Slatkin. Recording
of Veni, Veni, Emmanuel launches series on BMG, and
Koch Schwann disc of The Confession of Isobel Gowdie
wins Gramophone Contemporary Music Record of the Year
Award.
BIOGRAPHY 3