James MacMillan is one of the world’s most prolific and widely respected composers. To date, two of his works have been used in ballets, both choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon. The first of these is his Tryst, an early work, which helped to establish MacMillan as a composer. James speaks to the writer and composer, Stephen Johnson, about the way he and Wheeldon approached Tryst more than a decade after its composition, and of the relationship between the choreography and his music. He then talks about Shambards, the name of a ballet Wheeldon set to MacMillan’s second piano concerto, and also about some of the controversy which arose from the piece, both in New York, and in his native Scotland.

James MacMillan was born in 1959. Since the premiere of his The Confession of Isobel Gowdie in 1990, he has established himself as one of the world’s most successful composers, as well as an orchestral and choral conductor on the international stage. His music is filled with influences from his Scottish heritage, from his social conscience, from Celtic folk music, and above all from his Catholic faith. His works include four symphonies, a number of concerti (including three for piano), a number of cantatas and two Passions (St. John and St. Luke). Two of his compositions Tryst and Shambards (from his second piano concerto) have been choreographed in ballets by Christopher Wheeldon for the Royal Ballet in 2002 and New York City Ballet in 2004, respectively. James MacMillan was appointed CBE in 2004 and knighted in 2015. 

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