William Lyons

William is artistic director of the renowned ensembles the The City Musick and The Dufay Collective. As a player, he has performed with leading historical performance ensembles for over thirty years. William has featured as a specialist session musician on the soundtracks of many iconic films, including the Harry Potter series and The Hobbit, as well as several Wes Anderson creations. He is also a composer for theatre and film, including for numerous productions as composer and musical director at The Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre in London from 1998 to 2015. Most recently he has worked as historical consultant and composer on major films including Emma, and Mary, Queen of Scots. In 2019 he won the Crystal Pines award for Best Original Score for his work on the Oscar winning film The Favourite.

In the world of academia William is a Leverhulme Research Fellow, and a professor at the Royal College of Music. Published works include a chapter on theatre musicians in early modern London and articles for the Chanter journal. William is currently writing his PhD on theatre musicians in Shakespeare’s London.