HAMILTON, ON, APRIL 9, 2026 — The Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra is thrilled to announce Composer Fellows for the 26-27 season. Now in its ninth year, the Composer Fellowship program offers early-career Canadian composers artistic and professional mentorship with HPO musicians, staff, Music Director James Kahane and Composer-in-Residence, Abigail Richardson-Schulte. Selected by a jury of HPO artistic leadership and musicians, two new Composer Fellows and two Future Award winner will all gain mentorship and orchestral experience throughout the season while composing HPO commissions to be premiered this year. 
 

This Composer Fellowship program, along with the brand-new HPO Conductor Fellowship program, are part of the HPO’s initiative as a Centre for Musical Leadership, a dedication to supporting early-career composers and conductors as they navigate, grow, and thrive in the Canadian music industry. The Composer Fellows’ world premieres will showcase exciting new voices in Canadian music, a testament to the HPO’s commitment to nurturing an orchestral music scene that continues to evolve, inspire and speak to contemporary audiences. The Composer Fellowship program is presented in partnership with the Ontario Region of the Canadian Music Centre. 
 

Two Composer Fellow positions are available for the 26-27 season, with one for an emerging composer aged 26 or over and one for an emerging composer aged 25 or under. Leo Purich has been selected as for the 26 & Over category, and his new work will premiere at the 26-27 season opening night concert on Saturday, October 3, 2026 at FirstOntario Concert Hall. Ashton Latimer is this season’s Fellow in the 25 & Under category and will write a piece for Intimate & Immersive on April 1, 2027 at The Cotton Factory.  

The HPO is also thrilled to announce two Future Award winners, Sointu Aalto and Nic Bray. This category is offered to applicants who show exceptional promise, providing them the opportunity to be involved in the Composer Fellowship program staff sessions and additional mentorship. New this season, the Future Award winners will also receive a commission opportunity as well as a reading of their work with the HPO. Sointu Aalto will compose a piece for Intimate & Immersive on April 1, 2027 at The Cotton Factory, and Nic Bray will create a new work to be premiered by the Hamilton Philharmonic Youth Orchestra (HPYO). 

“We are delighted to welcome Leo Purich and Ashton Latimer to the HPO as this season’s Composer Fellows, along with Sointu Aalto and Nic Bray as our Future Award winners,” says Abigail Richardson-Schulte, HPO Composer-in-Residence. 

“They are all an ideal stage in their careers to benefit greatly from the experience they will get with our orchestra and team, and we cannot wait to share each of their unique compositional voices with our community. We thank the many talented and hard-working composers that applied and made this year’s decision a difficult one!”  

Leo Purich, 26-27 Composer Fellow 

Leo Purich is a Montreal-based composer and a performer on viola, violin, and piano. Their work is driven by curiosity about connections between people, sounds, and ideas, and is informed by their love of various styles of classical, jazz, and folk music. Highlights of Leo’s recent years include performing an original viola trio at the 50th International Viola Congress, as well as commissions from NYO Canada, Chœur Saint-Laurent, Sapphonix Collective, and the West Island and Mount Royal youth orchestras. Among the accolades they have received are four Young Composer Awards from the SOCAN Foundation (including first prize in the orchestral category for 2025), and the Saxophone Quartet Composition Residency at McGill for 2023-24. 

Ashton Latimer, 26-27 Composer Fellow 

Ashton Latimer is a Canadian composer from Vancouver, British Columbia, inspired by the textures and sound worlds that can be created by acoustic instruments. Through this exploration, he has begun to earn recognition through awards, competitions, and performances of his work. In 2026, Ashton was selected to participate in the Michael Nesbitt Composer Institute with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, where his orchestral work Overflow received its world premiere during the Winnipeg New Music Festival. During the festival, he was awarded Runner-up in the 2025 Emerging Canadian Music Centre Prairie Region Composer Competition and received a 2025 SOCAN Young Composer Award for Overflow. This work was completed in 2025 for the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra as part of the Jean Coulthard Readings, through which he is also engaged in a six-month mentorship. 

Sointu Aalto, 26-27 Future Award Winner 

Sointu Aalto is a composer and cellist born in Finland and currently based in Montreal. Her music explores the connections between mathematics, poetry, raw drama, timbral intensity and intertextuality. Her compositions have been commissioned and performed internationally by ensembles including Kymi Sinfonietta Orchestra in Finland, UltraViolet Ensemble in Edmonton, MATA festival in New York with Bergamot Quartet, New Music Edmonton, and Continuum Contemporary Music in Toronto. She has received multiple awards for her compositions, including a SOCAN Young Composers Award in 2024.  

Nic Bray, 26-27 Future Award Winner 

Manitoban composer and performer Nic Bray is a multifaceted musician whose practice spans composition, songwriting, and jazz saxophone performance. First finding acclaim as the winner of the 2025 Canadian Music Centre Emerging Composer Competition, his music bridges the gap between contemporary classical, jazz, and pop idioms, showcasing a versatile and inventive approach to composition. Nic’s recent founding of the Towers Archival Association showcases his desire to create spaces that make music accessible to all, with this organization aiming to bring public domain musical artifacts out of private collections and into public access. Through fundraising events and collaborative performances, Nic also demonstrates the potential to make a significant impact beyond the stage, using music to build stronger, more vibrant communities.  

About the HPO: For 140 years, the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra has presented orchestral music and education programs with a mission to enrich the wellbeing of the greater Hamilton region. The HPO presents dynamic orchestral performances ranging from standard classical repertoire to popular music and world premieres by living composers. As one of Canada’s leading professional orchestras, the HPO has proudly contributed to the shaping of Hamilton’s cultural landscape.   

HPO Media Contact: 

Megan Nourse 

Marketing & Strategic Initiatives Manager 
289-216-8273 
mnourse@hpo.org