Param Vir

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British composer originally from India

title: "Param Vir" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["british-opera-composers", "british-male-opera-composers", "indian-composers-of-western-classical-music", "indian-male-composers", "20th-century-british-classical-composers", "21st-century-classical-composers", "1952-births", "musicians-from-delhi", "living-people", "21st-century-british-composers", "20th-century-indian-musicians", "21st-century-indian-musicians", "20th-century-british-male-musicians", "21st-century-british-male-musicians", "pupils-of-peter-maxwell-davies"] description: "British composer originally from India" topic_path: "arts" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Param_Vir" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary British composer originally from India ::

Param Vir is a British composer, originally from India.

Born in Delhi into a family life permeated with Indian classical music, Param Vir's strong interest in music developed as a teenager when attending a Roman Catholic secondary school and had informal lessons from composer Hans-Joachim Koellreutter, then resident in India. With no prospects as a composer in India, he read history and philosophy at Delhi University, but returned to music on graduation in 1974 as a teacher.

Career

  • 1983 – attended Dartington International Summer School on a scholarship.
  • 1984 – moved to London to study with Oliver Knussen.
  • 1987 – awarded Benjamin Britten Composition Prize.
  • 1993 – Pierre Audi production of Broken Strings wins Ernst von Siemens Music Prize for young composers (Munich).
  • 2003 – first full production of ION tours Europe.
  • 2005 – Horse Tooth White Rock performed at the BBC Proms.
  • 2005 – Hayagriva commissioned and premiered by the Schoenberg Ensemble in Amsterdam
  • 2006 – Between Earth and Sky, inspired by Anish Kapoor's Cloud Gate, premiered by the BBC Symphony Orchestra in London
  • 2008 – He Begins His Great Trance for the BBC Singers; Black Feather Rising for Stichting Octopus
  • 2010 – Constellations for the BCMG performed at the Barbican
  • 2013 – BBC Proms Commission Cave of Luminous Mind
  • 2014 – Raga Fields – co-commission from Klangforum Wien, Fulcrum Point Chicago, the BCMG
  • 2017 – international tour of A Kinsman to Danger
  • 2020 – awarded PRS Composer Award for portrait CD on NMC

Selected works

Stage works

::data[format=table]

PremiereTitleDescriptionLibretto and source
11 May 1992, De Nederlandse Opera, AmsterdamSnatched by the GodsOpera in one act, 55'William Radice, after the poem Debatar Gras by Rabindranath Tagore
11 May 1992, De Nederlandse Opera, AmsterdamBroken StringsOpera in one act, 60'. (revised 1995)David Rudkin, after an ancient Buddhist tale Guttil Jatak
09 Jun 2000, Aldeburgh Festival / Almeida OperaIONOpera in 4 scenes with Prologue, 120'David Lan, after Euripides
24 Oct 2008, De Toneelschuur, HaarlemBlack Feather RisingMusic Theatre for 2 Singers and 6 Instrumentalists, 90'David Rudkin, after folklore collection Healers on the Mountain by Teresa Pijoan
::

Other

  • Before Krishna (1987; string orchestra)
  • Horse Tooth White Rock (1994; orchestra)
  • Ultimate Words: Infinite Song (1997; baritone, six percussion, piano)
  • The Theatre of Magical Beings (2003; large ensemble)
  • Hayagriva (2005; large ensemble)
  • Between Earth and Sky (2006; orchestra)
  • Cave of Luminous Mind (2013; orchestra) BBC commission for 2013 Proms
  • ABLAZE! (2014, soprano, piano)
  • Raga Fields (2014, sarod, mixed ensemble)
  • Drum of the Deathless (2017, percussion quintet or percussion duo)
  • A Kinsman to Danger (2017, baritone, piano)

References

References

  1. "Param Vir".
  2. (November 2025). "RASALÎLA – Spiel der Gefühle". Haus der Kulturen der Welt.
  3. Miller, Malcolm. (2001). "Vir, Param". Oxford University Press.

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british-opera-composersbritish-male-opera-composersindian-composers-of-western-classical-musicindian-male-composers20th-century-british-classical-composers21st-century-classical-composers1952-birthsmusicians-from-delhiliving-people21st-century-british-composers20th-century-indian-musicians21st-century-indian-musicians20th-century-british-male-musicians21st-century-british-male-musicianspupils-of-peter-maxwell-davies