Richard Peat studied with Peter Maxwell Davies, Rhian Samuel and Paul Max Edlin. He received his doctorate in Composition from City University (London) in 2007. His music has been performed by leading artists such as the London Sinfonietta, Martyn Brabbins, Stephen Layton and Nicholas Cleobury. Fiery the Angels, commissioned for Giles Underwood and Onyx Brass to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the John Armitage Memorial, will be broadcast on BBC Radio 3 later this year. His research interests include the role of composition in education, the music of Latvian composer Pēteris Vasks, the harpsichord in the 20th/21st Century and the representation of children in opera.