Eric whitacre composer biography template

Grammy Award-winning composer and conductor, Eric Whitacre, is among today’s most popular and widely performed composers. His works are programmed worldwide and his ground-breaking Virtual Choirs have united , singers from more than countries. Born in Nevada in , Whitacre is a graduate of The Juilliard School. He is currently Visiting Composer at Pembroke College, Cambridge University (UK) and is an Ambassador for the Royal College of Music (London). He recently completed two terms as Artist in Residence with the Los Angeles Master Chorale. Current commissions include a new work for distinguished violinist Anne Akiko Meyers and a major new choral composition to premiere in Recent projects include the album Home recorded with VOCES8 released on Decca Classics and an orchestral piece - Prelude in C - commissioned by the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra and the National Symphony Orchestra (USA). Whitacre is proud to be a Yamaha Artist.

Whitacre’s compositions have been widely recorded and his debut album as a conductor on Universal, Light and Gold, went straight to the top of the charts, earning a Grammy. As a guest conductor he has drawn capacity audiences to concerts with many of the world’s leading orchestras and choirs in venues from Carnegie Hall (New York) to the Royal Albert Hall (London). Insatiably curious and a lover of all types of music, Whitacre has worked with legendary Hollywood composer Hans Zimmer, as well as British pop icons Laura Mvula, Imogen Heap and Annie Lennox.

His composition, Deep Field, was inspired by the achievements of the Hubble Space Telescope and became the foundation for a pioneering collaboration with NASA, the Space Telescope Science Institute, and film-makers 59 Productions. His long-form work The Sacred Veil, a profound meditation on love, life and loss, was premiered by the Los Angeles Master Chorale, conducted by the composer, and released on Signum Records. Recently, Whitacre launched the Virtual School wit

Biography

Whitacre is that rare thing, a modern composer who is both popular and original

— The Daily Telegraph, London

Grammy Award-winning composer and conductor, Eric Whitacre, is among today’s most popular musicians. A graduate of The Juilliard School, his works are performed worldwide, and his ground-breaking Virtual Choirs have united well over , singers from more than countries. Among his recent accolades and awards, Eric received the Richard D. Colburn Award from the Colburn School and an Honorary Doctor of Arts from Chapman University (CA). His long-term relationship with Decca Classics has produced several no.1 albums which have enduring success.

Eric served consecutive terms as Artist in Residence with the Los Angeles Master Chorale and currently holds the position of Visiting Composer at Pembroke College. He’s also an Ambassador for the Royal College of Music in London and is proud to be a Yamaha artist. A long-term relationship with Decca Classics has produced several no.1 albums which have enduring success. Recorded with vocal supergroup VOCES8 and released in , Home features Eric’s work The Sacred Veil  alongside other works spanning his thirty-year composition career.

Eric’s newest composition, Eternity in an Hour, premiered at the Royal Albert Hall in London as part of the BBC Proms in September Written for choir, string quartet, piano and electronics, it’s the first time Eric has simultaneously conducted and played live electronics on-stage. The piece combines acoustic performance with live synths and real-time sampling and manipulation of the acoustic instruments. In , The Pacific Has No Memory, commissioned by revered violinist, Anne Akiko Meyers, will receive its premiere performed by Orpheus Chamber Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, followed by Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. Insatiably curious and a lover of all types of music, Eric has worked with legendary Hollywood composer Hans Zimmer, as well as British pop icons Laura Mvula,

Grammy-winning composer and conductor Eric Whitacre is one of the most popular musicians of our time. His concert music has been performed throughout the world by millions of amateur and professional musicians alike, while his ground-breaking Virtual Choirs have united singers from over different countries. A graduate of the prestigious Juilliard School of Music, Eric was recently appointed Artist in Residence with the Los Angeles Master Chorale having completed a five-year term as Composer in Residence at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge University, UK.

As conductor of the Eric Whitacre Singers he has released several chart-topping albums including ’s bestselling Light and Gold. A sought after guest conductor, Eric has conducted choral and instrumental concerts around the globe, including sold-out concerts with the London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the Minnesota Orchestra. In addition to several collaborations with legendary Hollywood composer Hans Zimmer, he has worked with British pop icons Laura Mvula, Imogen Heap and Annie Lennox.

A charismatic speaker, Eric has given keynote addresses for many Fortune companies and global institutions including Apple, Google, the World Economic Forum in Davos, the United Nations Speaker’s Programme and two main stage TED talks.