Jeremy Backhouse
Choral conductor Jeremy Backhouse is best known as the director of the London chamber choir, the Vasari Singers. He has also led the Guildford Philharmonic Choir, later renamed the Vivace Chorus, and the Salisbury Community Choir, as well as guest conducting several of Britain's leading choral ensembles.
Backhouse began his musical career as a boy chorister at Canterbury Cathedral, rising to the rank of Senior Chorister. For a time, he worked as an editor, beginning in 1980 for Britain's Royal National Institute of Blind People, where he transcribed printed music into Braille musical notation. He also held editorial posts with the EMI Classics label and with the music publisher Boosey & Hawkes before turning to freelance conducting. Backhouse is most familiar as the conductor, since 1980, of the Vasari Singers. This choir won the Sainsbury's Choir of the Year competition in 1988 and has gained a reputation for high-quality, accessible choral performances. The group performs at major concert venues around London, as well as in cathedral and chapel venues around Britain. Under Backhouse, the Vasari Singers are frequent guests on the Classic FM and BBC Radio networks. In 1995, Backhouse was appointed conductor of the Guildford Philharmonic Choir, later renamed the Vivace Chorus. Both with this group and with the Vasari Singers, Backhouse has been a strong advocate of contemporary music; with the latter ensemble, he has commissioned more than 25 new works. He also served as the director of the Wooburn Singers from 1998 to 2004 and has been a guest conductor with BBC Singers, the Philharmonia Chorus, and the London Choral Society, among other groups.
Backhouse has made more than 20 recordings as the director of the Vasari Singers, many of them devoted to contemporary music. He has appeared on the EMI, Signum, and Guild labels, among others. Since 2011, Backhouse and the Vasari Singers have been associated mostly with the Naxos label, where they released the thematic choral recital, Heaven Full of Stars, in 2020.
© James Manheim /TiVo
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Discography
9 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Music on Christmas Morning
Jocelyn Somerville, Elizabeth Limb, Roderick Williams, Martin Ford, Vasari Singers, Jeremy Backhouse
Choral Music (Choirs) - Released by Naxos on Oct 13, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tavener . Pärt . Górecki
Vasari Singers, Jeremy Backhouse
Classical - Released by Warner Classics on Feb 28, 2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Anthems for the 21st Century
Vasari Singers, Jeremy Backhouse
Classical - Released by Signum Records on Jul 26, 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Great British Anthems
Vasari Singers, Jeremy Filsell, Jeremy Backhouse
Choral Music (Choirs) - Released by Naxos on Jan 31, 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Requiem Aeternam
Vasari Singers, Jeremy Backhouse
Classical - Released by Signum Records on Jun 21, 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Requiem
Vasari Singers, Jeremy Backhouse, Carl Herring
Choral Music (Choirs) - Released by Naxos on Oct 1, 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Musique chorale
Vasari Singers, David Briggs, Jeremy Filsell, Jeremy Backhouse
Classical - Released by Naxos on Sep 30, 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
David Bruce: Fire
Horns Aloud, Salisbury Festival Chorus, Jeremy Backhouse, Brian Moles
Choral Music (Choirs) - Released by NMC Recordings on Jun 25, 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Hurd: Choral Music, Vol. 1
Vasari Singers, Julia Smith, Martin Ford, Jeremy Backhouse
Choral Music (Choirs) - Released by Lyrita on May 5, 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo