Born on 16 January 1943 in
Goole, in the
East Riding of Yorkshire, England, Bryars attended
Goole Grammar School. He studied philosophy at
Sheffield University but became a
jazz bassist during his three years as a philosophy student. The first musical work for which he is remembered was his role as bassist in the trio
Joseph Holbrooke, alongside guitarist
Derek Bailey and drummer
Tony Oxley. The trio began by playing relatively traditional jazz, touring with saxophonist Lee Konitz in 1966, before moving into
free improvisation. Bryars became dissatisfied with this when he saw a young bassist (later revealed to be
Johnny Dyani) play in a manner that seemed to him to be artificial, and he abandoned improvisation, becoming interested in composition instead. In 1998, the trio reformed briefly, giving two live performances and making recordings. Bryars's first compositions owe much to the New York School of
John Cage (with whom he briefly studied),
Morton Feldman,
Earle Brown, and
minimalism. One of his earliest pieces,
The Sinking of the Titanic (1969), is an
indeterminist work that allows the performers to take a number of sound sources related to the sinking of the
RMS Titanic and make them into a piece of music. On top of that loop, rich
harmonies played by a live
ensemble are built, increasing in density, before the whole thing gradually fades out. A recording of this work was made in 1993 with
Tom Waits singing along with the original recording of the homeless man during the final section. Bryars was a founding member in May 1970 of the
Portsmouth Sinfonia, an orchestra whose membership consisted of performers who "embrace the full range of musical competence", and which played popular
classical works. Its members included
Brian Eno, whose Obscure Records label would subsequently release works by Bryars. In one of the label's first three releases, Eno's album
Discreet Music, Bryars conducted and co-arranged
Three Variations on the Canon in D Major by Johann Pachelbel, which constitutes the second half of the album. The 1992 composition
A Man in a Room Gambling was written on commission from
Artangel. Bryars' music is heard beneath monologues spoken by the Spanish artist
Juan Muñoz, who talks about methods of cheating at card games (drawing on
The Expert at the Card Table by
S. W. Erdnase). The ten short works were played on
BBC Radio 3 without any introductory announcements, and Bryars wrote that Muñoz hoped they would appear to the listener in a similar way to the
Shipping Forecast, "bemused by this fleeting and perhaps enigmatic curiosity." Bryars has written many other works, including five operas and many instrumental pieces, among the latter six
string quartets and several concertos. He has written several pieces for dance, including
Biped (1999) for
Merce Cunningham, as well as works for
William Forsythe,
Carolyn Carlson,
Édouard Lock and
David Dawson. In 1981–1984, Bryars participated in
the CIVIL warS, a vast, never-completed multimedia project by
Robert Wilson, who also directed his first opera,
Medea. His cello concerto
Farewell to Philosophy was recorded in 1996 by
Julian Lloyd Webber. He has also written a large body of vocal and choral music for groups such as the
Hilliard Ensemble, the
Latvian Radio Choir, the Estonian National Men's Choir, Red Byrd,
Trio Mediaeval,
Singer Pur, Nordic Voices and The Crossing, whose recording of "The Fifth Century" won a Grammy in 2019. He has written a great deal for early music performers including six books of madrigals, several works for viol consort, and a collection of 54 "
laude" based on a 12th century manuscript. Bryars'
When Harry Met Addie (a tribute to jazz singer
Adelaide Hall and saxophonist
Harry Carney) was premiered at the
Duke Ellington Memorial Concert at the
Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, on 1 May 1999. The piece was performed by the London Sinfonietta Big Band and commissioned by the baritone saxophonist/bass clarinettist
John Surman.
Cristina Zavalloni sang the soprano and the London Sinfonietta Big Band was conducted by
Diego Masson· Bryars founded the music department at Leicester Polytechnic (now
De Montfort University), and was Professor of Music there for several years. He left in 1994 to concentrate on composition and performance. Since 1986, Bryars has run The Gavin Bryars Ensemble with his preferred musicians, consisting chiefly of low strings. Now, this regularly includes his children (2 cellos, piano and double bass). Since 1974, Bryars has been a member of the
Collège de 'Pataphysique and was elected Regent in 2001. In 2015 he was named Transcendent Satrap, the highest honour in the Collège, a position he shares with
Marcel Duchamp,
Man Ray,
Eugène Ionesco,
Umberto Eco, and others. In 2020, Bryars composed
Altissima Luce for
Sound World’s Coronavirus Fund for Freelance Musicians, a project supporting struggling musicians during the UK’s Covid 19 lockdown. It was included on the album
Reflections alongside specially written pieces by other composers such as
Nico Muhly,
Mark-Anthony Turnage,
Evelyn Glennie, and
Sally Beamish. In 2023, Bryars collaborated with
Goole band
Sandra's Wedding on their EP "Another Rugby League Town". Also in 2023, Bryars provided a special guest vocal for experimental composer Bill Vine's work, "Norwich Under the Water". The piece premiered at Norwich Cathedral in August 2023. In November 2024, Bryars received the
Ivor Novello Award for Innovation, presented in association with the
Musicians' Union, at The Ivors Classical Awards. ==Personal life==