Vic Hoyland Archive

Records of Vic Hoyland, c.1970-2014, including annotated scores and audio recordings.

Vic Hoyland was born in Wombwell, Yorkshire in 1945. His earliest interests were in painting, calligraphy and architecture, but after completing an Arts degree at Hull University and submitting prize-winning work to the BBC, he decided to concentrate on music. Wilfrid Mellers invited Vic to undertake a doctorate in the nascent music department at the University of York where his tutors were Robert Sherlaw Johnson and Bernard Rands. From 1980-1984, he was Haywood Fellow at the Barber Institute, then after two years at York University he returned to Birmingham as a full-time lecturer responsible for MDD, an interdisciplinary programme between music, drama and dance. He was subsequently Professor in Composition at Birmingham until his retirement in 2011. In 2015 he was made Emeritus Professor, in recognition of his longstanding and valued contribution to the University of Birmingham.
Commissions have come from many festivals – Aldeburgh, Almeida, Bath, Cheltenham, Warwick and Stratford, Huddersfield, South Bank and York – from organisations such as the BBC Symphony Orchestra and ensembles such as Lontano, the Arditti Quartet, Lindsay Quartet, BCMG, Endymion and Vocem. Works prior to 1994 are held by Universal Edition (Vienna). Works after 1994 are held by Composers Edition. Works include In transit for large orchestra which, together with Vixen, was recorded by the BBC Symphony Orchestra for NMC records. Most of Vic’s music has been broadcast on BBC Radio 3. The Other Side of the Air and Token are also available on NMC records. The second work in his orchestral triptych, Qibti was premiered at the Barbican on 18 December 2003 and conducted superbly by Sir Andrew Davis. This performance was nominated for the Royal Philharmonic prize, for its large orchestral category, 2004.
His piece for flute and piano, Sicilian Vespas was written in 2006 and first performed at Stratford Music Festival. May 2008 saw the premiere of Pierrot, a tribute to Pierre Boulez and performed in his presence. On 3 June 2009 Token was premiered by the Endymion Ensemble at the King’s Place London. The third and final part of Vic’s orchestral triptych, Phoenix, was premiered on 28 January 2009 by the BBC Symphony Orchestra, with a live broadcast on BBC Radio 3. Hey Presto! for 9 players, was given its world premiere by the BCMG, conducted by Diego Masson, on 16 October 2009 at the CBSO Centre, Birmingham. It was given a repeat performance by the same performers at Vic’s farewell concert, “Vale Victor”, at the Barber Institute, early 2011. A recent gift to Melinda Maxwell and Simon Limbrick is ‘Omer for oboe/cor anglais, and keyboard percussion with walking stick. His summa is WULF for 24 voices and 24 instrumentalists, completed May 2014. The four parts are titled WULF, NJAL, YSE and BHATA.

Records are open to the public, subject to the overriding provisions of relevant legislation, including data protection laws. 24 hours' notice is required to access photographic material.

The archive was gifted to the Borthwick Institute in 2023.

Vic Hoyland was born in Wombwell, Yorkshire in 1945. His earliest interests were in painting, calligraphy and architecture, but after completing an Arts degree at Hull University and submitting prize-winning work to the BBC, he decided to concentrate on music. Wilfrid Mellers invited Vic to undertake a doctorate in the nascent music department at the University of York where his tutors were Robert Sherlaw Johnson and Bernard Rands. From 1980-1984, he was Haywood Fellow at the Barber Institute, then after two years at York University he returned to Birmingham as a full-time lecturer responsible for MDD, an interdisciplinary programme between music, drama and dance. He was subsequently Professor in Composition at Birmingham until his retirement in 2011. In 2015 he was made Emeritus Professor, in recognition of his longstanding and valued contribution to the University of Birmingham.
Commissions have come from many festivals – Aldeburgh, Almeida, Bath, Cheltenham, Warwick and Stratford, Huddersfield, South Bank and York – from organisations such as the BBC Symphony Orchestra and ensembles such as Lontano, the Arditti Quartet, Lindsay Quartet, BCMG, Endymion and Vocem. Works prior to 1994 are held by Universal Edition (Vienna). Works after 1994 are held by Composers Edition. Works include In transit for large orchestra which, together with Vixen, was recorded by the BBC Symphony Orchestra for NMC records. Most of Vic’s music has been broadcast on BBC Radio 3. The Other Side of the Air and Token are also available on NMC records. The second work in his orchestral triptych, Qibti was premiered at the Barbican on 18 December 2003 and conducted superbly by Sir Andrew Davis. This performance was nominated for the Royal Philharmonic prize, for its large orchestral category, 2004.
His piece for flute and piano, Sicilian Vespas was written in 2006 and first performed at Stratford Music Festival. May 2008 saw the premiere of Pierrot, a tribute to Pierre Boulez and performed in his presence. On 3 June 2009 Token was premiered by the Endymion Ensemble at the King’s Place London. The third and final part of Vic’s orchestral triptych, Phoenix, was premiered on 28 January 2009 by the BBC Symphony Orchestra, with a live broadcast on BBC Radio 3. Hey Presto! for 9 players, was given its world premiere by the BCMG, conducted by Diego Masson, on 16 October 2009 at the CBSO Centre, Birmingham. It was given a repeat performance by the same performers at Vic’s farewell concert, “Vale Victor”, at the Barber Institute, early 2011. A recent gift to Melinda Maxwell and Simon Limbrick is ‘Omer for oboe/cor anglais, and keyboard percussion with walking stick. His summa is WULF for 24 voices and 24 instrumentalists, completed May 2014. The four parts are titled WULF, NJAL, YSE and BHATA.

Includes audio cassette tapes, compact discs, DVDs, floppy disks and digital material. Access to audiovisual and digital material may be restricted due to technical requirements, please contact the Borthwick Institute for more information.

Created by N. Melia, 4 September 2023.

A reprographics service is available to researchers subject to the access restrictions outlined above. Copying will not be undertaken if there is any risk of damage to the document. Copies are supplied in accordance with the Borthwick Institute for Archives' terms and conditions for the supply of copies, and under provisions of any relevant copyright legislation. Permission to reproduce images of documents in the custody of the Borthwick Institute must be sought.

Further accruals are expected.

Published

GB193