Raymond Helble began composing at the age of 10 and conducting at 12.

Although self-taught in composition, and never having had a private music lesson, he was accepted at Julliard, the Manhattan School of Music, and the Eastman School of Music due to his highly developed compositional technique: a technique gained by reading music theory textbooks and studying scores from the local library while a young boy.

Mr. Helble chose to do his undergraduate and graduate studies at the University of Rochester’s Eastman School. His teachers included Samuel Adler, Warren Benson, and Pulitzer Prize winner, Joseph Schwantner. His musical education also included conducting studies with Willis Page and Walter Hendl.

Mr. Helble’s music is recognized for its technical excellence, distinctive motivic material, contrapuntal dexterity, and highly polished finish, whether he writes in a tonal, modal, atonal, or serial manner. Of his 75+ published works, many have been in print for 30 years, and continue to find a market.

Due to his long association with marimba virtuoso Leigh Howard Stevens, Helble has produced a large set of works both for the marimba and the percussion ensemble that are standard repertoire.

Percussionists, chamber groups, and choral groups, and orchestras perform Mr. Helble’s music all over the world, and he has received ASCAP awards every year since 1990.