Born: 10 April 1958 in Belize.

Wallen’s musical career began with the study of dance in New York City. However, she discovered her passion was actually making music and consequently moved to London to study composition.

She has been named as one of the top twenty most performed living composers in 2022. She was one of nine female composers to make the list. From the Royal Opera House to the BBC, she has written a large variety of commissions and tours across the globe. In 2007, she was awarded an MBE.

Her works bridges the gap between popular and classical music. As a singer-songwriter and a composer, she has performed and recorded genres ranging from operas to jazz to pop. Her musical innovation saw that she was, in 1998, the first black female composer whose work, Concerto for Percussion and Orchestra, was performed at the BBC Proms as well as being the first woman to be given the Ivor Novello Award for Classical Music.

She composed music for the 2012 Paralympic Games Opening Ceremony and Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden and Diamond Jubilees. Recently, she has been commissioned to perform at the climate conference, COP 26, and her own reimagining of Jerusalem for 2020’s Last Night of the Proms.

In June 2021, Dido’s Ghost, Wallen’s critically acclaimed opera, premiered at the Barbican, London, and in November 2023, it will receive it’s US premiere by the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra and Chorale.

Errollyn has written a book, entitled Becoming a Composer, published by Faber in November 2023 and presented Musical Masterpieces, a three-part series for Sky Arts.