Peter Broadbent is one of Britain’s leading choral conductors particularly associated with contemporary music. In addition to his work with the Joyful Company of Singers he has conducted the London Mozart Players, Divertimenti Chamber Orchestra, the English Chamber Orchestra, the City of London Sinfonia, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the Southern Sinfonia, the Guildford Philharmonic Orchestra, Apollo Voices and the BBC Singers.
The Joyful Company of Singers which he founded in 1988 first came to prominence when it won the Sainsbury’s choir of the Year competition in 1990. Since then, it has maintained its profile in the music world, winning an impressive list of national and international competitions. The JCS has performed more than 30 first performances by major composers from many countries. Its discography of almost 30 CDs includes most recently two volumes of the choral music of Havergal Brian on Toccata Classics and a well-reviewed CD of music by John Casken on Métiér released this year.
Broadbent’s engagements outside the UK include concerts with the Kodály Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus in Debrecen, Hungary, a broadcast with the National Chamber Choir in Dublin and a European tour with the World Youth Choir in 2006. He gives workshops and master classes throughout Europe, and as the first Director of Training for the Association of British Choral Directors he helped to instigate and develop choral conducting courses.
In 2007 he was presented with the Pro Cultura Hungarica Award by the Hungarian Ministry of Education & Culture for his services to Anglo-Hungarian relations and in 2017 received the Knight’s Cross of the Hungarian Order of Merit. Peter was awarded an MBE in the 2022 New Year’s Honours list for his services to music.