Julia Wolfe
Julia Wolfe
Pulitzer Prize-Winning Composer
Making meaningful music...
Julia draws inspiration from folk, classical and rock genres.
Her Pulitzer Prize winning concert-length oratorio, Anthracite Fields,
for chorus and instruments, draws on oral histories, interviews and speeches to honor people who persevered in the PA Anthracite Coal Region.
The New York Philharmonic announced her new evening-length commission for orchestra and women’s chorus, Fire in my mouth, that will premiere in the fall of 2018.
This body of work reflects her interest in American labor history with the subject of women in New York’s garment industry at the turn of
the century.
Internationally Celebrated Composer…
Julia’s music is distinguished by an intense physicality that pushes performers to extremes and demands attention from the audience, such as riSE and fLY, commissioned and premiered by the BBC, featuring rapid-fire body slaps and street percussion.
Julia is the founder and
co-artistic director of the international music collective, Bang on a Can.
She is an Associate Professor of Music Composition at the NYU Steinhardt School.
Julia received her B.A from the Residential College at the University of Michigan,
her M.M. from the Yale School of Music,
and her Ph.D. from Princeton University
In her own words...
"Trust the power of your own voice. It’s important that you follow your mind and your heart,
trusting in yourself and your ideas."
How/when did you first become interested in music?
From a really young age I always responded very strongly to music. There was something about hearing music and moving to it. There was an energy that really spoke to me personally.
I can remember as a girl throwing on a record or sitting down at the piano and playing show tunes as my mom sang along... or playing Debussy or Chopin to keep my grandma company.
What makes your music unique?
I believe anyone who is writing and creating is working to find his/her own voice and, in that sense, every person essentially creates something unique. If you stick close to your heart, listen closely and trust what you’re hearing, you become drawn to certain kinds of harmonies, textures, musical ideas, sounds— and essentially that becomes your voice, your style.
My music tends to combine my passion for taking a closer look at who we are and then creating a discussion or a musical expression
of that.
What do you love about teaching as a Professor at NYU?
I’m more like a coach than a traditional teacher or lecturer. I really like to get into the classroom and create experiences as students are writing music, guiding them to explore and be adventurous. My classes are very hands-on, similar to
a workshop.
I like connecting with the next generation of voices, talking with them one-on-one about how they can reach out and be even more daring with their music.
"Everyone makes mistakes. Don't let that hold you back.
Life is about making mistakes and then learning from that."