Guest Composer, Edward Top
Edward Top (b. 1972) is a Dutch-Canadian composer whose vivid, genre-blending musical language has been described as both fiercely imaginative and emotionally direct. Born in The Netherlands, he studied violin and composition at the Rotterdam Conservatory with Peter-Jan Wagemans, Klaas de Vries and others, and later worked with leading composers such as Peter Eötvös, Pierre Boulez, Luciano Berio, and George Benjamin. He holds a Master’s degree in musicology from King’s College London, where he studied with Arnold Whittall.
After residencies and artistic projects in London, Bangkok and Rotterdam, Top settled in Vancouver, Canada. From 2011 to 2014 he served as Composer-in-Residence of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, working closely with Music Director Bramwell Tovey and contributing several major orchestral scores. He is currently Associate Professor & Division Chair of Composition at the Vancouver Academy of Music and teaches composition and orchestration at the University of British Columbia.
Top’s dark lyricism reveals a fascination with the grotesque and the sublime, drawing inspiration from visual art, post-minimalist energy, and extreme metal. It is described in the press as “disturbing, raw, full of violence, and yet also gentle with elegiac parts …” (Schwäbische Zeitung), and “Top has an ear for orchestral colour second to none … the work reflects an earthy neo-primitivism.” (Vancouver Sun). His output includes orchestral works, chamber music, vocal compositions, and pieces written for Asian instruments. Notable works include Totem, commissioned by the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra who performed it on tour in the United States, and Pots ’n Pans Falling, composed in memory of the young survivors of the Sandy Hook tragedy. His recent projects include collaborations with Chinese chamber orchestras in both Canada and Asia, reflecting his growing interest in cross-cultural sonorities.
His music has been commissioned and performed by ensembles such as the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Schoenberg Ensemble, Tokyo Sinfonietta, and the Raschèr Saxophone Quartet. Top’s scores are published by Donemus Publishing in the Netherlands.
Edward Top lives in Vancouver with his family and continues to pursue an international career across North America, Europe, and Asia.