A self portrait by Nicholas Hilliard

The Hilliard Ensemble is a British male vocal quartet devoted to the authentic performance of early music. Founded in 1974, the group is named after the Elizabethan miniaturist painter Nicholas Hilliard. Download high resolution version (701x700, 103 KB)portrait of Nicholas Hilliard by Nicholas Hilliard www. ... Download high resolution version (701x700, 103 KB)portrait of Nicholas Hilliard by Nicholas Hilliard www. ... Early music is European classical music before the classical music era and after Ancient music. ... 1974 (MCMLXXIV) is a common year starting on Tuesday (click on link for calendar). ... Elizabeth ushers in Peace and Plenty. ... Self-portrait, 1577. ...

Although most of its work focuses on music of the Medieval and Renaissance periods, the Hilliard Ensemble also performs contemporary music, working frequently with the Estonian composer Arvo Pärt and including in its concerts works by John Cage, Gavin Bryars, Giya Kancheli, and Heinz Holliger. A musician plays the vielle in a 14th century medieval manuscript. ... Renaissance music is classical music written during the Renaissance, approximately 1400 to 1600. ... Arvo Pärt photographed by Tonu Tormis Arvo Pärt (born 11 September 1935) is an Estonian composer, often identified with the school of minimalism. ... John Cage John Milton Cage (September 5, 1912 – August 12, 1992) was an American experimental music composer and writer. ... Richard Gavin Bryars (born 1943) is an English composer and double bass player that can be related to experimental music, avant-garde, neoclassicism, and ambient. ... Giya Kancheli (Georgian: გია ყანჩელი), born August 10, 1935 in Tbilisi, is probably Georgias most famous living composer and cultural export. ... Heinz Holliger (born May 21, 1939) is a Swiss oboist and composer. ...

The group was originally founded by Paul Hillier, Paul Elliott, and David James, although the membership was flexible until Hillier left in the late 1980s. Since 1990 the core members have been David James, Rogers Covey-Crump, John Potter, and Gordon Jones. Paul Douglas Hillier (b. ... The 1980s, in its most obvious sense, was the decade between 1980 and 1989. ... This article is about the year. ...

The Hilliard Ensemble has recorded extensively for the ECM label. In 1993, when popular interest in Gregorian chant was at its height, the ensemble released the CD Officium, an unprecedented collaboration with the Norwegian saxophonist Jan Garbarek. The disc became one of ECM's biggest-selling releases of all time, reaching the pop charts in several European countries. (Officium's sequel, the 2-CD set Mnemosyne, followed in 1999.) ECM (Edition of Contemporary Music) is a record label founded in 1969 by Manfred Eicher. ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... Gregorian chant is also known as plainchant or plainsong and is a form of monophonic, unaccompanied singing, which was developed in the Catholic church, mainly during the period 800-1000. ... Jan Garbarek (born March 4, 1947) is a Norwegian tenor and soprano saxophonist active in the jazz, classical, and world music genres. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ...

External link

• The Hilliard Ensemble official site