Randall Giles

Randall Giles was born in 1950 in Oregon City, Oregon. His first studies in composition were with Mark DeVoto at Reed College in Portland, Oregon. He took his undergraduate degree at the University of York in England, while studying privately in London with Sir Peter Maxwell Davies. Subsequently he received a M.Mus. degree from Northwestern University and a Ph.D. from the University of California, San Diego. His list of works includes orchestral and chamber music, works for the stage and for television, music for schools, and a large catalogue of sacred music.

He has been commissioned for compositions from numerous organizations including Eton College, Windsor; The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Oregon; the (Episcopal) Cathedral of St. Paul in San Diego (for a setting of music for the Episcopal "Great Pascal Vespers"); All Saints Church, Pasadena; The Ambrosian Singers of Kansas City; and the Oregon Symphony Orchestra and Philharmonic Chorus. 

He has a strong interest in the music and people of other cultures, and has spent extended periods in rural Alaska, Africa and Asia. He is currently a missionary of the Episcopal Church USA, as the director of the Department of Liturgy and Music for the Church of South India’s Madras Diocese in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. He is also involved in both composition projects and the recording of Anglican music from various parts of the world for the Anglican and Global Relations Department of the Episcopal Church. Music from South India and from the Solomon Islands are the first recordings in the series. More recordings are planned. 

Dr. Giles has taught music theory, history and composition at several universities and colleges including Lewis and Clark, Marylhurst, and Linfield Colleges in Oregon; and was head of the music department at Queen's College, London. Currently he is Visiting Professor at three theological seminaries in India, United Theological College, Bangalore, St Thomas Syrian Orthodox Seminary, Nagpur, and Gurukul Lutheran Theological College in Chennai.