Philippe Hersant was born in Rome in 1948. He lives and works in Paris. After studying music at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris, where he was a composition student of André Jolivet, he was awarded a scholarship to the Casa Velasquez in Madrid from 1970 to 1972 and then to the Villa Médicis in Rome from 1978 to 1980.

He was a producer at France Musique from 1973 to 2005.

He has been composer-in-residence with the Orchestre National de Lyon (1998-2000), the Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire (2007-2009), the Orchestre de Bretagne (2008-2010), the Festival des Forêts (2015-2018), the Festival de Besançon and the Cité de la Voix in Vézelay (2016-2018), and the Festival Aspects des Musiques d'aujourd'hui in Caen (2017).

He headlined the Radio France Festival Présences in 2004. In addition to the premiere of his Violin Concerto and Éphémères for piano, a major retrospective of his works was presented.

He was guest composer at the Festival Ombres et Lumières de Clairvaux (2011-2016). His work with prisoners at the Clairvaux power station has given rise to several choral works (Instants limites, Métamorphoses, Kitoo, Résurrection).

Between 2006 and 2017, he served three terms as a director of the SACD, where he chaired the Music Commission on three occasions.

He is a member of the boards of the Ensemble vocal Aedes, the Compagnie La Tempête and the Orchestre de Chambre de Paris.

He is Chairman of the Association Jeunes Talents, which is recognised as being of public interest, and Chairman of the Music Jury of the Fondation d'Entreprise Banque Populaire.

His catalogue includes almost two hundred works for a wide variety of ensembles: solo instrumental music, chamber music, orchestra and choir. He has written three operas: Le Château des Carpathes (1992), commissioned by the Montpellier Festival and Radio France, Le Moine noir (2006), commissioned by the Leipzig Opera and Les Éclairs, based on a libretto by Jean Echenoz (2021), commissioned by the Opéra-Comique.

He has also written ballet music for the Paris Opera, Wuthering Heights (2002) with choreography by Kader Belarbi, Vêpres de la Vierge (2013) commissioned by Notre-Dame de Paris for the 850th anniversary of the cathedral, and a choral opera, Tristia, commissioned by Teodor Currentzis and the Perm Opera in Russia.

He has also composed a large number of stage and film scores (including Nicolas Philibert's Être et avoir).

Widely recognised in the music world, he has been awarded numerous distinctions: Grand Prix musical de la Ville de Paris (1990), Prix des Compositeurs de la SACEM (1991), Prix Arthur Honegger (1994), Prix du Syndicat de la Critique Musicale et Dramatique (1994), Prix Maurice Ravel (1996), Grand Prix de la Musique Symphonique awarded by the SACEM (1998) Grand Prix de la Fondation Del Duca awarded by the Académie des Beaux-Arts (2001), Grand Prix Lycéen des Compositeurs (2012), Prix Musique awarded by the SACD (2014) and three Victoires de la Musique Classique (composer of the year, in 2005, 2010 and 2016).

He is a Commandeur des Arts et Lettres.