Colin Currie

One of the most exciting performers in the world today, Colin Currie is a multi-award-winning percussionist renowned for his dynamism, charisma and virtuosity.

Born in Edinburgh on September 25th, 1976, Currie began musical studies at five years old, before attending the Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, and later the Royal College of Music. In 1994, he became the first percussionist to reach the final of the BBC’s Young Musician of the Year competition, and although accomplished as a junior, playing principal timpani and percussion with both the European Union and Scottish National Youth Orchestras, Currie’s chief focus has always been solo performance and chamber music.

Today, Currie is the soloist of choice for many of the world’s foremost conductors, and performs regularly with leading orchestras and ensembles in the U.K. and abroad, including the London and New York Philharmonics, the Royal Concertgebouw and the Philharmonia. A champion of new music, Currie has premiered works by composers such as Helen Grime, Sir James MacMillan, Elliott Carter, Danny Elfman, and Steve Reich, with many contemporary compositions written specifically for him.

In 2006, Currie founded the Colin Currie Group - an ensemble dedicated to performances and recordings of work by American minimalist Steve Reich. Originally formed for a performance of Reich’s 1971 work Drumming at the BBC Proms (to celebrate the composer’s 70th birthday), the group has since performed extensively all over the world, including, on occasion, with Reich himself.

Having launched his conducting career with the Colin Currie Group, Currie has gone on to lead performances by the London Symphony Orchestra, the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Manchester’s Hallé Orchestra, amongst others. He has been the recipient of various awards including the Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award in 2005, and was recognised by the Royal Philharmonic Society in 2015 for his outstanding contributions as an instrumentalist.

Committed to creating and commissioning new works, Currie has had a profound impact on contemporary music, undoubtedly helping to elevate the profile of percussion on a global scale.