Gavin Bryars

Gavin Bryars studied philosophy at Sheffield University ,and became a professional jazz bassist and a pioneer of free improvisation working especially with Derek Bailey and Tony Oxley. In the late 1960s he worked with John Cage: this influenced early works such as the indeterminately scored The Sinking of the Titanic of 1969 and the 1971 work Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet.

A major turning point in his development was his first opera Medea, premièred at the Opéra de Lyon and Opéra de Paris in 1984. He has written two further operas, both with libretti by his long time collaborator Blake Morrison: Doctor Ox's Experiment (1998) for ENO, and G commissioned by the Staatstheater Mainz for the Gutenberg 600th anniversary.

He has produced a large body of chamber music, both for his own ensemble and for other performers. He has also written extensively for strings as well as producing concertos for violin, viola, cello, double bass (plus one for jazz bass), saxophone and bass oboe. He has also written much choral music, chiefly for the Latvian Radio Choir, with whom he has recently recorded a second CD.

Bryars taught for a number of years in art colleges and has collaborated with many visual artists such as Bruce McLean, Tim Head, James Hugonin, Bill Woodrow and Will Alsop (Valencia Architecture Biennale). In 2006 he was a guest speaker at the 10th Alvar Aalto Architecture Symposium in Finland. He has made installations/performances for the Liverpool Tate Gallery, the Tate St. Ives, the Chateau d'Oiron, among others and worked closely with the late Juan Muñoz, notably on A Man in a Room, Gambling.

He has also has worked for many years with early music performers and has embarked on a series of books of madrigals: for the Hilliard Ensemble, the Trio Mediaeval Sextet, and Red Byrd. He has also set old Irish texts and is working on settings of Faroese saga poetry.

Gavin Bryars' work is widely recorded, and he has set up his own label GB Records.

He is  an Associate Research Fellow at Dartington College of Arts and Regent of the Collège de 'Pataphysique.