Gordon Hamilton (Artistic Director)

Gordon Hamilton

Artistic Director and Conductor of The Australian Voices, Gordon Hamilton was born in Newcastle and, having lived and worked for five years in Germany as a conductor and composer, now resides in Brisbane.

He studied in Australia at the University of Newcastle Conservatorium from 2000–2004, majoring in composition with Nigel Butterley and piano with Carmel Lutton. At the same time, he undertook private lessons in orchestral conducting with David Banney.

While still a student, Hamilton had several successes as a pianist and conductor. In October 2003 he was invited to the City of Hakodate, Japan where he performed a solo piano program of Messiaen, Butterley and Debussy. In 2004 Hamilton conducted the premiere of the opera “The Impossible Body”, by Katrina Pring, for which he and Pring received a City of Newcastle Dramatic Award (CONDA).

From 2005 until 2009 he lived in Bremen, Germany. In January 2006, Hamilton founded Northern Spirit, a young vocal ensemble committed to contemporary choral music. Under Hamilton’s direction Northern Spirit gave over fifty concerts in Germany, Spain, France, and Iceland. The choir premiered seventeen works and took part in four international choral festivals.

In September 2009 Hamilton moved back to his homeland to take over as the new conductor and artistic director of one of Australia’s foremost youth choirs - The Australian Voices (TAV) which had been under the direction of respected Australian composer Stephen Leek for twelve years. Hamilton sang with this acclaimed ensemble from 2000 until 2004. Several of his compositions, including “Under the Shadow of Kiley’s Hill” (2000) and Priepriggie (2009), have been commissioned by TAV and performed in many different countries.

Hamilton has received several international awards for his compositions, including first prize in the Coral Gables Congregational Church Florida 2006 Composition Prize, with a work for strings (“Reggaeton”, which premiered in 2007 in Florida U.S.A.). Another of Hamilton’s string compositions (“Sale el Sol”, which had its premiere in 2008 in Raumberg, Austria) won the second prize at the International Chamber Days, Raumberg 2008 Composition Prize. Finally, Hamilton’s work for chamber orchestra “Sinfonietta-Concertante” (which was premiered by the Luxembourg Sinfonietta in 2007 in Ettelbruck, Luxembourg) received fourth prize in the Luxembourg Sinfonietta 2007 Composition Prize.

Hamilton is a represented composer at the Australian Music Centre.