Vernon Hoyle
Vernon Hoyle was born in 1948 in Hatfield, South Yorkshire. Having received his first music lessons locally from John Hubert Piper, at the age of fifteen he became a student at the Huddersfield School of Music (Huddersfield College of Technology, School of Music). After five years’ study in Huddersfield he continued his formal education at the City of Birmingham College of Education and the Open University.
From 1969 until his retirement he taught music and English (and for three years in the early 80s, photography) at secondary schools in West Yorkshire. In his sundry roles as chorister, organist, choral director, composer, arranger and editor he has been active in church music since childhood. As a conductor of visiting choirs, notably in the 80s and 90s as Musical Director of the Danensian Choir, he directed the music at services in most of the cathedrals in England and at other foundations including Llandaff Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, Beverley Minster and St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. In 2005 he succeeded the late Dr Roger Bullivant (University of Sheffield) as President of the Danensian Choir.
His compositions and arrangements, a variety of which are published in the UK and USA, consist largely of sacred choral works and organ music. With Professor Jonathan Wainwright (University of York) he is co-editor of seven published choral collections, including two major collections of psalm chants (Cantica Nova and Cantica Nova 2) and a collection of fifty Christmas carols for soprano, alto and men entitled Nowell! Nowell!. Together these feature music by over 140 contemporary composers.
Outside music his interests and activities include the English language, photography, applied psychology, criminology, classic motor vehicles, running, dog walking and cycling.
He is married to Margaret and they have a son, Matthew (b.1992) and a daughter, Alison (b.1995).