Michael Nyman Biography
Nyman's compositions began with the libretto for Harrison Birtwistle's Dawn by the Greenwood Side who later commissioned him to provide arrangements for the 1976 production of Carlo Goldoni's Il Campiello. Once finished he used the same band to form the Michael Nyman Band and published his first study Experimental Music: Cage and Beyond in 1974. Nyman continued writing works for the band as well as several stage works such as The Man who Mistook his Wife for a Hat and music for distinguished choreographers. His largest audience was achieved through film scores, most famously for working with Jane Campion on The Piano. After revising his opera Facing Goya in 2002 Nyman began his three years as Composer in Residence for the Badisches Staatstheater, Karlsruhe. He has commissions from the BBC and has also produced a piece in memory of John Peel, Melody Waves for the Singapore Chinese Orchestra and in future a piece to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the birth of Mozart. Nyman launched his own label - MN Records, in the spring of 2005 with The Spotlight Sings, his debut solo album.
