Laurence Osborn (b. 1989) is a British composer. Laurence has worked with many of the UK’s leading orchestras and ensembles, including the London Philharmonic Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Britten Sinfonia, The Riot Ensemble, Manchester Collective, 12 Ensemble, GBSR Duo, and Ensemble 360. Abroad, his music has been performed by Ensemble Modern, Ensemble Klang, and Agata Zubel. Laurence has a number of ongoing close collaborations with performers, including The Riot Ensemble, harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani, ‘cyborg pianist’ Zubin Kanga, and soprano Sarah Dacey.

In November 2023, the Wigmore Hall put on ‘Laurence Osborn Day’, an all-day retrospective of Laurence’s music featuring performances of six pieces given by the Solem Quartet, Marian Consort, Britten Sinfonia, Mahan Esfahani and violinist Fenella Humphreys. Laurence’s music has been programmed throughout the UK, at venues such as The Southbank Centre, Kings Place, Milton Court and LSO St Lukes (London), Symphony Hall (Birmingham), Stoller Hall and RNCM (Manchester), RWCM (Cardiff), The Holywell Music Room (Oxford), The Crucible Theatre (Sheffield), and Kettle’s Yard (Cambridge).

Laurence’s music has been consistently championed by Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, who presented Ctrl (2017), Absorber (2019), and co-commissioned Essential Relaxing Classical Hits (2020-1). He also has a close relationship with Norfolk and Norwich Festival, who presented Coin Op Automata (2021) and co-commissioned TOMB! (2022). Other UK festivals to feature Laurence’s work include Music in the Round Festival, Cheltenham Festival, St Magnus International Festival, and Ulverston International Music Festival.

Laurence’s music has been programmed throughout Europe, including at Festival Présences (Paris), Alteoper Frankfurt, November Music Festival (Den Bosch), and The Georg Solti Hall (Budapest). Laurence's music has been broadcast on BBC Radio 3, BBC Radio 4, Resonance FM, and Deutschlandfunk Kultur. His music has also been released on NMC, Resonus Classics, Rubicon Classics and Coviello Contemporary.

Laurence’s piece TOMB! won both the 2024 RPS Award for Chamber-Scale Composition and the 2024 Ivor Novello Award for Chamber Ensemble Composition. Two other pieces have been nominated for Ivor Novello Awards: Lakes, Mists, Bats, Daggers and Fountains in 2024, and Essential Relaxing Classical Hits in 2022. As a young composer, he won the Royal Philharmonic Society Composition Prize (2017), was runner up in the New Cobbett Prize for Composition (2014) and the International Antonin Dvorak Composition Competition (2013) and was shortlisted for the ICSM World Music Days (2018). He has held positions in association with LSO Soundhub (2013-15), Nonclassical (2015-17), and the London Philharmonic Orchestra (2017-18).

Laurence read Music at Hertford College, Oxford, studying Composition with Martyn Harry and Martin Suckling, and graduating with a 1st in 2011. He then studied for an MMus in Composition with Kenneth Hesketh at the Royal College of Music, London, supported by an RVW Trust Scholarship and graduating with Distinction in 2013. Laurence then studied for an MA in Opera Making and Writing with Julian Philips at The Guildhall School of Music, generously supported by The Leverhulme Arts Scholarship. He graduated with Distinction in 2015, and held the position of Artist Fellow in Composition for the following year. While composing freelance from 2016 to 2018, Laurence studied composition privately with Julian Anderson. He then studied for a PhD in Composition at Kings College London, supervised by Sir George Benjamin, and supported by a full scholarship from the AHRC London Arts and Humanities Partnership (LAHP) Research Studentship.

Laurence Osborn is represented by Rayfield Allied worldwide. For all professional enquiries contact Ben Rayfield (Artist Manager) at ben.rayfield@rayfieldallied.com or Katie Smart (Head of Administration) at katie.smart@rayfieldallied.com.