Photo: Benjamin Ealovega
Stephen Layton
Representation: General Management
"Layton’s performances inspire the soul as they break the heart with their intense beauty."
American Record Guide, 2008
Stephen Layton will succeed the late Richard Hickox as Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the City of London Sinfonia from September 2010.
Layton guest conducts widely and has worked with the Philadelphia Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, London Sinfonietta, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Ulster Orchestra, Bournemouth Symphony, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Britten Sinfonia, Northern Sinfonia, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Academy of Ancient Music and with the English, Scottish, Irish and Australian chamber orchestras. For English National Opera he conducted Bach’s St John Passion in a stage production with Deborah Warner.
A champion of new music, Layton has premiered new repertoire by many composers, including Arvo Part, Thomas Ades and James Macmillan. His bold realisation of Sir John Tavener's epic seven-hour vigil The Veil of the Temple, a new departure in British music, met with outstanding acclaim both in London at the Proms and in New York at the Lincoln Center Festival.
Layton founded Polyphony in 1986 whilst he was the organ scholar of King’s College Cambridge. He is Principal Guest Conductor of the Danish National Vocal Ensemble, Music Director of Holst Singers and in 2006 was made a Fellow and Director of Music of Trinity College, Cambridge. He has been Director of Music at the Temple in London and Chief Conductor of the Netherlands Kammerkoor.
Layton’s eclectic discography on Hyperion ranges from Handel to Bruckner and Poulenc, Pärt and Tavener, Lukaszewski and Whitacre. In 2001 his recording of music by Britten received a Gramophone Award and the Diapason d’Or in France for best choral disc of the year. In the US, Layton was nominated for Grammy Awards in both 2006 and 2007 for his Hyperion recordings of Whitacre and Lauridsen respectively and in 2009 his Hyperion recording of Tormis ‘Songs’ with the Holst Singers received the Spanish CD Compact award. Layton’s latest Hyperion disc is a recording of Handel’s Messiah with Polyphony and Britten Sinfonia.
Recent engagements include performances with the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, the Latvian Radio Choir and the Polish Chamber Choir. Future engagements include the Hallé, Melbourne Symphony, Queensland Orchestra and Odense Symphony.
“…the effect is nothing short of electrifying..."
Gramophone, November 2007
Promoters please note: if you wish to include this biography in a concert programme etc, please contact Hazard Chase to ensure that you receive the most up to date version.
Email: Sarah Trelawny
