Composer Missy Mazzoli wants to increase the representation of women composers in classical music “by serving as an example in her career and mentoring upcoming female composers through her volunteer work,” writes MeiMei Fox on Thursday (3/22) at Forbes.com. In addition to composing orchestral and chamber music and operas, “Mazzoli tours and performs with her band Victoire and teaches at the Mannes School of Music at the New School in New York City. In 2016, along with composer Ellen Reid and in partnership with Kaufman Music Center, Mazzoli founded Luna Composition Lab, an organization that provides mentorship and professional opportunities for female composers in their teens…. Luna Lab already has established partnerships with the Metropolitan Opera, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, New Amsterdam Records, Contemporaneous Ensemble, and the New York Philharmonic.… Mentorship, Mizzoli believes, is an essential aspect of any career. But in male-dominated fields, women in particular need role models who look like them.” Says Mazzoli, “Looking back at my career, I wish I had asked for help more, cultivated relationships with more mentors, and sought advice from musicians…. I think people who have reached a level of professional success often want to be mentors and are just waiting to be asked.”
Posted March 23, 2018
Pictured: Missy Mazzoli (in white jacket) at the BBC Symphony’s premiere of her “Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres),” with conductor Karina Canellakis, September 2017
