Stewart Copeland has spent three decades in the forefront of contemporary music as a rock star, acclaimed film score writer, and composer in the disparate worlds of opera, ballet, world music and chamber music. Recruiting Sting and Andy Summers in 1977, Stewart formed The Police, a rock band that became a defining force in rock music and reunited 23 years later for a 14 month world tour whose success was a testament to the enduring popularity of the band and its music.  Stewart spent twenty years as a successful film and TV composer, working for the likes of Francis Ford Coppola on Rumblefish and Oliver Stone on Wall Street.  He returned to his drum kit to form Animal Logic with Stanley Clarke and Oysterhead with Trey Anastasio and Les Claypool, meanwhile finding time to win the Archie David Cup with his polo team (on a horse).  Stewart was commissioned to write a ballet for the San Francisco Ballet and his first opera, “Holy Blood and the Crescent Moon” for the Cleveland Opera in 1989.  In April 2011 he wrote a short opera based on the Edgar Allen Poe story “The Tell-Tale Heart,” which premiered at the Royal Opera House in London.

 

Recent commissions include his score for MGM’s silent film classic, “Ben-Hur” which premiered at the Virginia Arts Festival and which will be performed in 2014 with The Chicago Symphony.  His new percussion concerto, “Poltroons in Paradise” was recently performed by The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic.  In 2015 his new opera, “The Invention of Morel” will premiere at The Long Beach Opera.  Awards include the keys to the city of Milan, The Chevalier of the Order of Arts & Letters (France), five Grammys and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  Through it all, a sense of humor and appreciation for his utterly unique career has shone through as he has enjoyed working in a remarkable array of genres