This page gives a summary of Paul's work as a composer and arranger. If you need a biography for a programme note, or for publicity & promotion, please contact Paul for the latest version, or use the wording available at the "biographies" page of this website [click here].
Paul Ayres was born in London, studied music at Oxford University, and now works freelance as a composer & arranger, choral conductor & musical director, and organist & accompanist. His music usually involves words - solo songs, choral pieces, music for theatre productions - and he is particularly interested in working with pre-existing music, from arrangements of folksongs, hymns, jazz standards and nursery rhymes to ‘re-compositions’ of classical works, as in Messyah, Purcell’s Funeral Sentence and 4A Wreck.
Paul’s music has been commissioned by
BBC Singers, Clifton Lodge School, Essex County Music Services, Exmoor Singers of London, Figur'd Shade, Gallions Primary School, Haven Green Baptist Church, Hull Ladies' Musical Union, Ickenham Music Festival, London Festival of Contemporary Church Music, London Pro Arte Choir, Marks & Spencer, Ocarina Workshop, Quicksilver Theatre Company, Scunthorpe Co-operative Junior Choir, St Barnabas Church Dulwich, Voices in Harmony, Walbrook Singers and many private sponsors (UK); Air Concertante (Denmark); Andante Andante Choir (Australia); Alexandria Choral Society, California Lutheran University, Wartburg College, Wheaton College Men's Glee Club, Sychronia Ensemble, The Esoterics, Texas Lutheran University (USA)
and has been performed by
solo singers: James Bowman, Wills Morgan, Henry Moss, Mark Wilde, Roderick Williams instrumentalists: David Goode, Jamie Hitel, Paul Plummer, Becky van der Post, Nick White choirs: BBC Singers, Chapel Royal St James’s Palace, Chicago Acappella, Conspirare, Harlow Chorus, New London Children’s Choir, St Paul’s Cathedral Boston, Pegasus, US Naval Academy Chapel Choir and many other vocal groups in the UK, Australia, Canada, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, The Netherlands, Slovakia, South Africa, USA
Paul’s vocal, choral and keyboard pieces have been broadcast on
BBC2 TV, BBC Radio 3, Classic FM (UK), syndicated programmes to 50+ NPR stations (USA)
and his compositions have received prizes & awards including
British Composer Award (shortlist) Amadeus Choir of Toronto’s composing competition (first place) BBC Young Composer of the Year (finalist) Richard Gregson-Williams Memorial Prize (finalist) Surrey Sinfonietta’s composition prize (finalist) composition prize at Cambridge Contemporary Music Festival (finalist) Diana Barnhart American Song Competition (‘Recognition of Excellence’ award) Festival des Arts de Saint-Sauveur, Canada (third prize)
some works are published & distributed by
Beartramka, Boosey & Hawkes, Decani Music, Fagus Music, Parish Publications, Oxford University Press, RSCM (UK); Norsk Musickverlag (Norway); Roger Dean/Lorenz, Graphite Publishing, E C Schirmer, Kallisti Music Press, Mainely A Cappella, Oregon Catholic Press, Santa Barbara Music Publishers, Zimbel Press (USA)
but most of Paul’s music is self-published and available from www.paulayres.co.uk