An interview with Michael Finnissy
An interview with Michael Finnissy
Michael Finnissy (born in London on 17 March 1946) is one of our foremost living composers of art music. He is also gay, but his sexual orientation is just one aspect of his character, and he resists being reduced to the label 'gay composer'. This long-form interview explores his life, works, and career, examining aspects of his 'queer' identity, the impact that this may have had on his career, his queer artistic influences, and questions of legacy. The interview was principally conducted on 21 May 2024 in central London and on 7 December 2024 at Michael's home in Sheringham, Norfolk, with further clarificatory emails and telephone calls between those dates and after, up until November 2025.
Michael Finnissy, queer identity, composing, teaching, contemporary music, music education
Bretherton, David
5d675429-1285-4ab3-9e59-3907afc60390
Bretherton, David
5d675429-1285-4ab3-9e59-3907afc60390
Abstract
Michael Finnissy (born in London on 17 March 1946) is one of our foremost living composers of art music. He is also gay, but his sexual orientation is just one aspect of his character, and he resists being reduced to the label 'gay composer'. This long-form interview explores his life, works, and career, examining aspects of his 'queer' identity, the impact that this may have had on his career, his queer artistic influences, and questions of legacy. The interview was principally conducted on 21 May 2024 in central London and on 7 December 2024 at Michael's home in Sheringham, Norfolk, with further clarificatory emails and telephone calls between those dates and after, up until November 2025.
Text
Bretherton QMT FINAL 1.8.25
- Accepted Manuscript
More information
Submitted date: 21 June 2025
Accepted/In Press date: 20 January 2026
e-pub ahead of print date: 13 February 2026
Keywords:
Michael Finnissy, queer identity, composing, teaching, contemporary music, music education
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 508990
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/508990
ISSN: 0749-4467
PURE UUID: 769bacfa-8e39-49dd-a567-f933c865d63d
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Date deposited: 09 Feb 2026 17:57
Last modified: 16 Feb 2026 17:31
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