Paul Douglas Hillier (born 9 February 1949), was born in Dorchester, England. He is an active conductor, director, and singer (baritone). He specializes in early music and contemporary art music, especially that of composers Steve Reich and Arvo Pärt. Hillier studied at Guildhall School of Music, and later became a vicar-scholar at St Paul's Cathedral, London, where he started his professional career. Hillier had his concert debut in 1974 in London's Purcell Room.
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Ensembles
- In 1974 he co-founded The Hilliard Ensemble along with fellow vicar-scholar Paul Elliott, and David James, who probably knew Elliott when they were both at Magdalen College, Oxford. He was for a period the group's musical director, until he left, around 1989.
- In 1989 he founded Theatre of Voices, which records on the French label Harmonia Mundi. With this group he explores more contemporary repertoire, in addition to early music.
- When Hillier became the director of the Early Music Institute at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music he became director of The Pro Arte Singers, who put out a couple of recordings with Theatre of Voices. He was director until he left the Institute in 2003.
- In 2001 Hillier became Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir (EPCC).[1]
- Since 2003 he has been Chief Conducter of Ars Nova Copenhagen.
- In 2008 he was appointed as new artistic director and chief conductor of the National Chamber Choir of Ireland.
Hillier has also recorded a number of solo albums, some with harpist Andrew Lawrence-King. He has recorded under the harmonia mundi, ECM, EMI, Finlandia, and Hyperion labels.
Academic appointments
Hillier has had numerous academic appointments over the years, starting in 1980, and most recently as director of Indiana University Bloomington's Early Music Institute, but has always returned to performance.
Publications
- The Catch Book (2005), Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-343649-3, a collection of catches, or comic rounds edited by Hillier.
- A Josquin Anthology (2005), Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-353218-2, a collection of choral pieces by the notable Renaissance composer, edited by Ross Duffin and Hillier.
- Writing on Music, 1965-2000 (2002), Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-511171-0, a collection of writings by Steve Reich, edited by Hillier.
- Arvo Pärt (1997), Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-816616-8, The only English-language biography of the famed Estonian composer.
- 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.
See also
External links
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