Carissimi
Clement Ishmael
Clement is a graduate of the University of Toronto and Royal Conservatory of Music, where he specialized in composition and conducting as well as singing. His classical compositions and arrangements have been performed worldwide as well as being broadcast by BBC Television and Radio. His first Opera Looking at the Sun was performed at the Battersea Arts Centre and his chamber opera Grazyna was performed at the Royal Opera House's Lindbury Studio. Clement is currently World Wide Music Supervisor for Disney's The Lion King.
Highlights from Clement's conversation with The Enormity of Now are below:
Who are you and what do you do, and how did you get here?
I'm a composer and conductor. That's who I am, erstwhile sometimes a musical director.
My life has been a series of accidents. The trajectory of my career has been a series of accidents and choices that led me to places I did not expect to go.
I started off with my voice. I started in a small choir, we were all singing together. Then I studied singing. All that has been put together as the lynchpin of my career, so that I know I can train voices. At this point, I'm using all my skills that I have. All the strings to my bow have come together in the job I'm doing now.
The voice that I found is that I can communicate with people. I thought I was shy and hiding. As a pianist you can do that. I quite enjoy it all now, standing up in front of people and training and coaching and encouraging. That's the voice I have now, which I didn't know I had. It seems to be the thing that most people appreciate from me: encouraging, helpful and finding ways to bring out the best in people.
Clement is a graduate of the University of Toronto and Royal Conservatory of Music, where he specialized in composition and conducting as well as singing with Joyce Britten. He was Associate conductor of the Royal Conservatory of Music Choirs under the tutelage of Denise Nacisse-Mair. After graduating he continued his studies in conducting and composition at the Guildhall School of Music in London.
Conducting credits include Abbey Players Opera Company, Ad Astra Chorus, Addison Jazz Ensemble and West London Gospel Choir. He also conducted the contemporary ballet Awakening at Sadlers Wells. West End credits include: Five Guys Named Moe, Ain't Misbehavin', Smokey Joe's Café, and Soul Train. He has also directed and arranged the music for numerous shows which include: Sweet Lorraine, Up Against the Wall, The Amen Corner, The Grape Vine, The Cavalcaders and Gem of the Ocean.
His classical compositions and arrangements have been performed worldwide as well as being broadcast by BBC Television and Radio. His first opera Looking at the Sun was performed at the Battersea Arts Centre and his chamber opera Grazyna was performed at the Royal Opera House's Lindbury Studio. Clement's commission for the London Piano Trio was debuted at the Capri Music Festival in Italy. More recently he composed a four movement piece for strings from the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra. His current projects include the music for Mustapha's Matura's play Playboy of the West Indies, his third opera Antigone with librettist Mel Cooper, and music for the children's musical The Gathering.
Clement is currently World Wide Music Supervisor for Disney's The Lion King.