Biography

Paul Honey’s musical career began as a chorister at Westminster Abbey, where he sang daily in the choir. He is a graduate of at Southampton University where he studied music history, composition and orchestration. Since graduating, he has enjoyed a highly varied musical life, working as a composer and arranger, performer, musical director and producer.

Early on in his career he worked primarily as a pianist and keyboard player. For some years he toured with the acclaimed Asian vocalist Najma Akhtar. The group toured worldwide, including many WOMAD festivals, performing as far afield as Australia, Japan, North America and Europe. However, in the last few years he has concentrated on working as a composer primarily for Film and TV as well as for the concert platform.

Paul has composed music for a wide variety of productions, including the quirky comedy of BBC1’s Blandings, the BAFTA winning Old Jack’s Boat (recorded with the BBC Philharmonic and BBC Nationals Orchestra of Wales), the BBC Natural History Unit’s series Earth’s Wildest Waters and the documentary feature The Atom: A Love Affair.  He was nominated in 2023 for a Royal Television Society Award and a Music and Sound Award for his score for the documentary feature The People’s Piazza: A History of Covent Garden.

Most recently, he has been working with the poet Gregory Warren Wilson on a series of works for voice together with various ensembles. The music includes Five Elements, a work in five movements for Cello and Chamber Choir, and three collections of songs; A Wing of Light, Dancing Alone and Songs of Ice and Snow, composed for Tenor and Piano, Baritone and Piano and Mezzo Soprano and Saxophone Quartet respectively. The music has been recorded for release in the near future and features the Locrian Singers with the cellist Justin Pearson, tenor James Gilchrist with pianist Anna Tilbrook, and mezzo soprano Frances Gregory with the Delta Saxophone Quartet. The music has received broadcasts both on BBC Radio 3 in the UK and NPO Klassiek in the Netherlands. Performances include A Wing of Light at the Dartington Festival and Songs of Ice and Snow at Late Music, York.

Other collaborations include a collection of orchestral arrangements of traditional Irish music, curated with the violinist Dermot Crehan. Premiered at St Martin in the Fields in London, an album of the music was recorded by the RTE Concert Orchestra.