Colin Tilney
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Harpsichordist, fortepianist and teacher, Colin Tilney was born in London, England in 1933. He studied music and modern languages at Cambridge and Oxford, studied harpsichord with Mary Potts at Kings College, Cambridge, and became a student of Gustav Leonhardt. After graduation at Oxford he spent several years as an opera coach and piano accompanist at Sadler's Wells Theatre and the New Opera Company, following which he focused his energies on teaching and performing on early keyboard instruments. In 1964 he was the harpsichordist under the direction of Igor Stravinski for the original Columbia recording of The Rake’s Progress.
In 1979 Tilney moved to Canada and settled in Toronto, where he continued to teach privately and at the Royal Conservatory of Music. He performed with Taffelmusic Baroque Orchestra and the Toronto Consort, as well as touring to Asia, Australia, Europe and Great Britain. In 1985 he formed the chamber ensemble Les Coucous Bénévoles, which regularly commissions new music by Canadian composers. He taught for several seasons at the Dartington Summer Festival in Totnes England. He has been recorded for radio broadcast by the BBC and CBC, which has also issued CD’s of his performances. In 2002 Tilney moved to Victoria, British Columbia, where he continues to teach and perform.
Colin Tilney is well known for his historically informed approach to performance practice, performing on antique instruments or instruments based on antiques, using largely original music sources.
Tilney’s contributions to literature include The Art of the Unmeasured Prelude - France 1660 to 1720 (Schott's, London, 1991), and previously unpublished harpsichord music by Antoine Forqueray (Heugel 1970).
Colin Tilney has a long discography of harpsichord and fortepiano performances from lables including Dorian, Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, Oiseau-Lyre, EMI Reflexe, Nonesuch, Vangard, DoReMi and several others.
