1959
Born on July 16th at Kilwinning in Ayrshire, Scotland.

1963
The family moves to Cumnock where he attends the local Roman Catholic School.

1969
Instrumental lessons soon lead to his earliest compositions, including a small piano piece and some orchestral music.

1977-81
Studies music at Edinburgh University where Rita McAllister introduces him to Stravinsky, Webern, Messiaen and 20th century Russian music.

1981
Begins postgraduate composition studies at Durham University with John Casken.

1983
Returns to Ayrshire working as a part-time teacher; starts playing and singing Scottish and Irish folk music.

1884
Sets The Tryst by William Soutar in the style of an old Scots ballad: the melody is to be a source of inspiration in many future works.

1986
Takes up a lecturing post at Manchester University.

1987
Awarded PhD from Durham University. Litanies of Iron and Stone is premiered at Musica Nova in Glasgow.

1988
Returns to Scotland and settles into an extremely creative period.
Catholicism and political concerns meet in Busqueda;collaborations with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra on educational work begin, taking projects to schools and communities new to contemporary music.

1989
Composer-in-Residence at the St Magnus Festival, Orkney where Tryst is premiered by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra under Paul Daniel.
Teaches the first composers course on Hoy with Peter Maxwell Davis.
Visions of November Spring performed by the Bingham String Quartet.

1990
Tryst tours to Vienna, Nuremburg and Zagreb, Busqueda is performed at the Edinburgh Festival with Diana Rigg and the Confession of Isobel Gowdie is enthusiastically received at it's Proms premiere.
A piano concerto,The Berserking is premiered by Peter Donohue and the Royal Scottish Orchestra conducted by Matthias Bamert at Musica Nova in Glasgow.
Helps establish a new post-graduate composition class at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama.
Rolf Hind's recording of the Piano Sonata is released.

1991
Conducts the Confession of Isobel Gowdie with the Philharmonia in London and is subsequently appointed the orchestra's Visiting Composer.
The Confession of Isobel Gowdie is performed by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra in Rome and on a Dutch tour by the Gelders Orkest under Kenneth Montgomery.
Tuireadh is premiered at the St Magnus Festival by the Allegri String Quartet and James Campbell.
Featured composer at the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival.
Commences work on the opera Inés de Castro.
Records the old Tryst song with his heroes of folk music, the Whistlebinkies.

1992
Tryst tours England on the Contemporary Music Network with the Bournemouth Sinfonietta and Tamas Vasary.
First recording of Confession of Isobel Gowdie and Tryst.
New works include Sinfonietta for the London Sinfonietta and Veni Veni Emmanuel, a percussion concerto for Evelyn Glennie and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra.

1993
Premiere of Seven Last Words from the Cross in BBC production for Easter, followed by Visitatio Sepulchre and Epiclesis, a trumpet concerto with John Wallace as soloist and the Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Leonard Slatkin.
Featured composer at the Edinburgh Festival.Busqueda staged in Wiesbaden.
Recording of Veni Veni Emmanuel wins Classic Cd award; birth of twins Aidan and Clare.

1994
Brittania premiered by London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Michael Tilson Thomas at the Barbican, London.
Over thirty performances of this overture take place in the UK; small piece for the renowned Kronos Quartet entitled Memento is premiered in New York.
German premiere for Veni Veni Emmanuel followed by first US performances with Mstislav Rostropovitch conducting.
Rostropovitch asks MacMillan to write two scores: a cello concerto for him to play and a symphony for him to conduct.
Seven Last Word from the Cross televised nightly during Holy Week and premiered in Glasgow.

1995
Completes the opera Inés de Castro, world premiere to take place at the Edinburgh Festival performed by Scottish Opera.
MacMillan conducts all MacMillan concert in Gdansk including a new version of Tuireadh for string orchestra.

1996
World Premiere performances of Inés de Castro, which is a public success but proves controversial for its blending of traditional narrative structure with post modern musical style, The Worlds Ransoming and Rostropovitch performing The Cello Concerto.

1997
100th performance of Veni Veni Emmanuel takes place.
World Premieres for Ninian, written for clarinetist John Cushing, I (A Meditation on Iona ) and Fourteen Little Pictures.
Featured composer at the Bergen festival. World Premiere of first symphony Vigil completing the tryptch of works for Rostropovitch and the LSO, entitled Tridium.
20 works performed at the Raising Sparks festival in London, the festival being named after the song cycle for Jean Rigby and the Nash Ensemble.
Accepts position as artistic director with RSNO.

1998
Premiere of Why is this night different? by the Maggini Quartet and orchestral version of Cantos Sagrados by RSNO in Glasgow.