Eric Whitacre speaks with enthusiasm and passion about his music.

“I can’t stand the term ‘Classical’ because it implies old music. The problem is that no one has a good name for it anymore. It’s even worse when they call it ‘Serious Music.’ I hate that name, not only because it isn’t true but it sounds so stuffy.”

An accomplished composer, conductor and lecturer, Eric Whitacre has quickly become one of the most popular and accomplished composers of our time. Although he received no formal training before the age of 18, his first experience performing in the college choir changed his life forever.

Eric continued his education at the distinguished Juilliard School, where he earned his Masters of Music degree, while studying under the direction of Pulitzer Prize, and Oscar winning, composer John Corigliano.

“I am just making music that I would like to listen to – sound that move me deeply and come directly from me. Choral music is generally considered classical, but I grew up listening to rock and pop in the ‘70’s and ‘80s. I am heavily influenced by my pop roots.”

Most recently, Whitacre has received acclaim for Paradise Lost, a cutting edge musical, combining trance, ambient and techno-electronica with choral, cinematic, and operatic traditions. Winner of the ASCAP Harold Arlen award, the musical also gained Whitacre the prestigious Richard Rodgers Award for most promising musical theater composer.

In 2001, he became the youngest recipient ever awarded the coveted Raymond C. Brock commission by the American Choral Directors Association. His music has been featured on commercial and independent recordings, and the full collection of his acappella music was released under the Hyperion label in spring 2006.