Biography.guide
Home β€Ί People β€Ί Composer β€Ί Allan Gilliland
Portrait of Allan Gilliland

Allan Gilliland

b. 1965

Canadian classical composer

Don't just read it β€” keep itBiographies to ownE-book Β· Audio Β· Video From $7 β†’

About Allan Gilliland

Born 1965. Allan Gilliland is a Canadian composer.

Allan Gilliland (born 1965 in Darvel, Scotland) is a contemporary Canadian composer.

Gilliland moved to Canada in 1972 and settled in Edmonton, Alberta. He received a diploma in Jazz Studies (trumpet) from Humber College, and degrees in performance and composition from the University of Alberta. His teachers were Violet Archer, Malcolm Forsyth and Howard Bashaw.

He has written music for solo instruments, orchestra, chorus, brass quintet, wind ensemble, big band, film, television and theatre.

His works have been performed by the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, ProCoro Canada, the Canadian Brass, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, the New York Pops, the Hammerhead Consort, and the brass section of the New York Philharmonic.

From 1999 to 2004, Gilliland was Composer in Residence with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, composing nine major works, including concerti for violin, and two harps. Dreaming of the Masters I (2003), a jazz concerto written for clarinet soloist James Campbell, is perhaps his most popular work, and received its American premiere by the Boston Pops in 2004. Dreaming of the Masters II - GEB, a jazz rhapsody for piano and orchestra written for William Eddins and jointly commissioned by CBC and the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, received its world premiere on February 22, 2008. Dreaming of the Masters III, a three-movement jazz suite for trumpet and orchestra written for Jens Lindemann and commissioned by the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra with funding from the Alberta Foundation for the Arts received its world premiere on September 17, 2010. His orchestral work On the Shoulders of Giants won first prize at the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra's Composers Competition in 2002. thumb

In 2007, the Alberta-based Arktos Recordings Limited label released Collaborations, a CD devoted exclusively to Gilliland's music. The track listing is: The Winspear Fanfare M'bira Suite from the Sound Cancion Love's Red Rose Four by Four Roots Concerto for Oboe, Strings and Harpsichord

Gilliland is currently Chair of the Music Program and Head of the Composition Department at MacEwan University in Edmonton.

Works Chamber music Suite from the Sound (clarinet and string quartet) (2005) Go Deeply Now Everlasting (piccolo trumpet and string quartet) (2004) Love's Red Rose (two harps) (2003) Adventures (clarinet, cello and piano) (2002) Sacred Time (2000) Basse Danse (bass trombone and tuba) (1999) Roots (solo 6-string electric bass) (1999) M'bira (solo marimba) (1998) Reflections of Infinity (piano, percussion, and string quartet) (1996) Four by Four (two pianos and two percussionists) (1994) Two Wheels for Four Percussion (four percussionists) (1993)

Fanfares Early Mornin' Fanfare (brass and percussion) (2001) Enbridge Fanfare (brass and percussion) (2001) A Call to Your Seats (brass and percussion) (2000) The Winspear Fanfare (brass and percussion) (1997)

Jazz Band A Touch of Olive and Brown Abanico Another Softly Petits Oiseaux Rhythm Buddy Stranger on the Prairie

Keyboard Spring Celebration (organ) (2005) Cancion (piano) (1999)

Musical Theatre The 7th Circle (2001) Dead Beat: A Zombie Musical (2003)

Opera Hannaraptor (2007) Orchestra Fantasia on themes from West Side Story (chamber orchestra) (2006) Fantasia on themes from West Side Story (full orchestra) (2006) Alberta Echoes (2005) Always Be True (brass, percussion, organ & strings) (2002) Loch na Beiste ( 2001) An Overture for the Worlds (2001) On the Shoulders of Giants (2000/1) Shadows & Light (2000)

Orchestra with Choir O Canada (arrangement for orchestra, organ & choir) (2004) We Stood Beside Each Other (choir and orchestra) (2000/1)

Orchestra with Dancers A Wild Symphonic Ride (2002)

Orchestra with Soloist(s) Dreaming of the Masters III (trumpet and orchestra) 2010 Dreaming of the Masters II - Rhapsody GEB (piano and orchestra) (2007) Concerto for Oboe, Strings and Harpsichord (2004/5) Concerto for Accordion and String Orchestra (2004) Dreaming of the Masters I (clarinet and orchestra) (2003) Gaol's Rhuah RΓ²s - A Celtic Concerto for Two Harps and Orchestra (2002/3) Concerto for Violin and Orchestra (2002) Concerto for Trumpet (1993)

Vocal Words for Music Perhaps (tenor and piano) (1993)

Choral Ubi Caritas (SATB choir, brass quintet and organ) (2003) Blessed (SATB a cappella choir) (2002) A la esperanza (2 marimbas and SATB choir) (2001) In My Cloudless Days (SATB a cappella choir) (1997) He Tells of Perfect Beau'y (SATB a cappella choir) (1995) Beloved be at Peace (SATB a cappella choir) (1995) The Cloths of Heaven (SATB a cappella choir) (1994)

Wind Ensemble Inspiration (2006) Dreaming of the Masters I (clarinet and wind ensemble) (2003) (adapted from orchestral version) Concerto for Piccolo Trumpet (piccolo trumpet and wind ensemble) (2004/5) (adapted from Concerto for Oboe, Strings and Harpsichord) Pulsar (2005) For 250 years (2004) Loch na Beiste (2001) Dreamscapes (2002) Amaryllis (1998) Ascension (1997) ukuTusa (1995)

Biography shop

Don’t just read it β€”
keep it.

Full-length biographies made to live with: read them, listen on the way to work, watch them tonight.

  • E-book
  • Audio
  • Video
Browse the shop β€” from $7

Instant download Β· yours to keep Β· every purchase keeps this site free

Important facts

Born
1965, Darvel
Birth century
Occupation
Nationality

People in Allan Gilliland's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Allan Gilliland's

Frequently asked questions

Who is Allan Gilliland?

Canadian classical composer

When was Allan Gilliland born?

Allan Gilliland was born in 1965 in Darvel.

What is Allan Gilliland's occupation?

Allan Gilliland is a composer.

What nationality is Allan Gilliland?

Allan Gilliland is Canadian.

Sources & further reading

Β· Wikipedia: Allan Gilliland

Β· Wikidata: Q4730625

Β· DBpedia: Allan Gilliland

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Allan Gilliland. https://biography.guide/allan-gilliland/

MLA: "Allan Gilliland." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/allan-gilliland/.

Chicago: "Allan Gilliland." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/allan-gilliland/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-20 Β· Spot an error? Report a correction.

Page generated 2026-09-27 05:21 UTC