Paul Stanhope

Associate Professor Paul Stanhope is a distinguished composer, conductor, and educator at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, University of Sydney. His work spans composition for voices, choirs, orchestras, and operas, with a focus on score-based works and collaborations with Indigenous Australian communities. He holds an Associate Professorship and has been honored with prestigious awards, including the Toru Takemitsu Composition Prize and multiple APRA Awards.

Education:

• Studies with Andrew Ford, Andrew Schultz, and Peter Sculthorpe in Australia
• Charles Mackerras Scholarship for studies at London’s Guildhall School of Music (2000)

Research Interests:

• Composition for voices, choirs, and new opera
• Choral conducting and score-based works
• Indigenous Australian cultural collaborations (e.g., Jandamarra)

Awards & Honors:

• First place, Toru Takemitsu Composition Prize (2004)
• Sidney Myer Creative Fellowship (2013–2014)
• APRA/Australian Music Centre Awards across instrumental, orchestral, choral, and vocal categories
• David Harold Tribe Symphony Prize (2019)

Advising & Projects:

• Supervising research students Aija DRAGUNS and Jessica NEWELL
• Current project: A major work for the West Australian Symphony Orchestra and Chorus
• Collaborations include Australia Ensemble, Sydney Chamber Choir, and Gondwana Choirs

Labs/Teams:

• Associated with the Sydney Conservatorium’s composition program
• Collaborations with Indigenous communities like the Bunuba nation