Cevanne Horrocks-Hopayian facts for kids

Cevanne Horrocks-Hopayian is a talented British composer, singer, and harp player. She is known as one of the most exciting new composers today. She creates unique music that often includes visual elements.

About Cevanne Horrocks-Hopayian

Cevanne Horrocks-Hopayian was born in Suffolk, England. She has both British and Armenian family roots. When she was a child, she went to Junior Guildhall. This is a special Saturday school run by the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.

Later, she studied Music at Girton College, Cambridge. She earned a top degree in 2005. While there, she won several awards for her music and research. She also received a scholarship to study at Trinity Laban Conservatoire in London.

Her Music Career

Cevanne started working with the famous London Symphony Orchestra in 2010. She was part of their Panufnik Scheme, which helps new composers. She wrote music for the London Symphony Orchestra Community Choir in 2017.

The orchestra also asked her to arrange a traditional Gamelan piece. Gamelan is a type of music from Indonesia. Her arrangement was performed at the Barbican Centre. She is also a Soundhub Associate for the London Symphony Orchestra. This means she works closely with them on new music projects.

Special Places She Worked

Cevanne has been a "composer-in-residence" at different places. This means she worked there for a period, creating new music.

She was a visiting fellow at Girton College starting in 2020. From 2015 to 2017, she was the first composer-in-residence for the London Symphony Orchestra at Khadambi Asalache's House. This house is a unique place called 575 Wandsworth Road. Cevanne's music often includes visual parts, which she calls "Eye Music." She uses these visuals to shape her music, not just to decorate it.

From 2012 to 2014, she was also a composer-in-residence at the Handel House Museum. In 2016, she helped open Jimi Hendrix's old flat to the public. She performed her own music there with other artists.

Awards and Recognition

Cevanne has won many awards for her amazing music.

In 2007, Sound and Music gave her an award for her project called 'Bhangra Latina'. She also received an Arts Council England Award. This helped her record her first album, 'Big Ears'. This album was inspired by her own experience of being partly deaf. She won another Arts Council England Award in 2012 for her large musical work, The Evolution of Eve.

In 2013, she won a PRS award for her piece L'envoi. This music honored Emily Wilding Davison, a brave woman who fought for women's right to vote. The Evolution of Eve was turned into a radio show for young people in 2013. It was a finalist at an international radio award show in 2015.

In 2015, Cevanne wrote 'Ser Սեր (Love)' for the London Jazz Festival. She performed it herself with a guitarist. She later created a version for a choir. This version won an award from BASCA for composers from diverse backgrounds. The BBC Singers performed it, and it was played on BBC Radio 3.

In 2016, she wrote 'Muted Lines' for a project by Trish Clowes. This piece won the BASCA British Composer Award in 2017. In 2018, the Melodia Women's Choir of New York City asked her to write Red Bird. This piece tells the story of Zitkala-Sa, a Native American writer. It was performed for the first time in New York City.

Nominations for Awards

Cevanne was a finalist for two BASCA British Composer Awards in 2017. Her piece "Muted Lines" was nominated for the Jazz category. Her work "Khadambi's House" was nominated for the Chamber Ensemble category.

In 2018, she was a finalist for another BASCA British Composer Award with Hugh Jones. They were nominated for "Two Machines" in the Sonic Art category. For this piece, they created a new musical instrument called the 'sonic bonnet'. Cevanne used it with her harp at the BBC Proms in 2019.

In 2023, she and Hugh Jones were nominated for an Ivor Novello Award. Their outdoor art project, Rites for crossing water, was nominated for Best Sound Art.

Selected Musical Works

Cevanne Horrocks-Hopayian has created many different types of musical pieces. Here are some of them:

For Small Groups of Instruments

• Khadambi's House (2017) – for a singer, a small orchestra, and recorded sounds.
• Muted Lines (2017) – for a singer, saxophone, organ, bass, drums, and a small orchestra. This piece won an award.
• Ser Սեր (Love) (2015) – for a jazz band.
• 23 Brook Street (Jimi's Walls) (2015–2016) – for guitar, harp, and bass.
• L'Envoi (2013) – for a group of recorders.
• Turquoise Trail (2012) – for harp and string instruments.
• Hunting Bow (Home is where the harp is) (2011) – for a group of harps.

For Full Orchestras

• Ngedas Lemah (2017) – an arrangement of a traditional piece for string orchestra.
• Love Like Salt (Amor Como Sal) (2016) – for a youth orchestra and electronic sounds.
• A Dancing Place (2010) – for a symphony orchestra.

For Voices

• The Swallow (2017) – for a soprano singer and a string quartet.
• Inkwells (2016–2017) – for voice and recorded sounds.
• Sari Siroon Yar (2012) – an arrangement of a traditional song for voice and strings.
• Big Ears (2010) – for voice, piano, harp, cello, drums, and tabla.

For Choirs

• Red Bird (2018) – for a women's choir and string quartet.
• Ser Սեր (Love) (2017) – for an unaccompanied choir.
• The Fence-Sitter (2017) – for an amateur choir and brass instruments.

Using Electronics

• Two Machines (2018) – for voice and sounds found in everyday life.
• Walls & Ways (2016–2017) – for clarinet and recorded sounds.
• Sisa's Well (2013–2017) – for voice, harp, and found sounds.

For Theatre and Dance

• DJ Helga (2013) – a radio play with voices, hang drum, harp, and cello.
• The Evolution of Eve Oratorio (2012) – a large musical work for singers, instruments, and electronics.
• Generation (2019) – an opera commissioned by Hera Opera Company.
• FAKE OR STAKE! (2019) – an opera performed at the Royal Opera House.
• Seasons in our World (2019) – a ballet with orchestra and electronics for Birmingham Royal Ballet.

Her Albums

Cevanne has also released several albums where she writes, produces, and performs her own music.

As Writer, Producer, and Performer

• 2021 – Welcome Party – with the LSO and other musicians.
• 2020 – Panufnik Legacies III – with the LSO.
• 2019 – BRACE – an album with Hugh Jones, as Crewdson and Cevanne. It includes "Two Machines," which was nominated for an award.
• 2015 – The Evolution of Eve EP – from the radio play DJ Helga.
• 2013 – Peekaboogie – a collaboration with Jessica Hynes and other artists.
• 2010 – Big Ears – her first experimental pop album.

Featured on Other Albums

• 2017 My Iris – by Trish Clowes. Cevanne composed the track 'Muted Lines', which won an award.
• 2013 Fable:Time – by Shama Rahman. Cevanne performed on this album.
• 2011 Galaxies not ghettos – by United Vibrations. Cevanne performed on this album.
• 2008/9 Bhangra Latina – by Kuljit Bhamra and Alex Wilson. Cevanne composed and performed on the track 'Dark Garden'.