Described by the Observer as “a contemporary hero of British Choral Music”, Bob Chilcottt works tirelessly as a composer and choral conductor. He has over 125 pieces published by Oxford University Press, two acclaimed recordings on Signum, Making Waves (The Sirens) and Man I Sing (BBC Singers),and he wrote the title tracks for the King’s Singers albums, Swimming over London and High Flight. His Irish Blessing featured on the multi-platinum debut album of The Priests in 2008. In March 2012 his Requiem was released on Hyperion, performed by Wells Cathedral Choir and the Nash Ensemble, conducted by Matthew Owens, and in November two complete discs of his music will appear, one by the BBC Choir of the Year, the Wellensian Consort, and the other, on Signum, on which he conducts the Wroclaw Philharmonic Choir.
In 2002 he was appointed Principal Guest Conductor of the BBC’s acclaimed professional choir, the BBC Singers, and he has conducted other distinguished choirs including RIAS Kammerchor, Vancouver Chamber Choir, Jauna Musika, The World Youth Choir, Tower New Zealand Youth Choir, Taipei Chamber Singers, Wroclaw Philharmonic Choir, and the Kyoto Echo Choir. Since 1997 he has conducted in 23 countries, and in 2012 he has invitations to conduct in Poland, Denmark, Spain, Germany, China, Japan, USA, and Canada.
Chilcott maintains a busy schedule of commissions. 5 August 2012 sees the first performance of The Angry Planet in the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall, commissioned for The Bach Choir, BBC Singers, National Youth Choir of Great Britain, and a children’s choir taken from education projects in two London boroughs. 2013 will see the completion of an hour-long setting of the St John Passion for Wells Cathedral for SATB choir, soloists, and instruments, and Five Days that Changed the World, a 20-minute work setting words by Charles Bennett for youth choirs, brass, and organ, which will be premiered in Worcester Cathedral as part of Europa Cantat and Sing UK’s Worcester International Festival for Young Singers in July 2013.