“New York retains a remarkable cadre of composers... but chief among these is the singular figure of Paola Prestini.”

– Financial Times

“Ms. Prestini is known for pushing the boundaries of classical music, in part through collaborations — with poets, filmmakers and conservationists, among others.”

– The Wall Street Journal

Through an illustrious career being equal parts creator and connector, composer Paola Prestini is known both for her “otherworldly…outright gorgeous” music (The New York Times), as well as the “visionary-in-chief” (Time Out New York) and Co-Founder/Artistic Director of the non-profit music organization National Sawdust.

Over 25 large scale artistic works are the result of Prestini joining forces with conservationists, poets, virtual reality film directors, astrophysicists, and puppeteers.

Read full bio

LATEST NEWS

View all
September 14, 2021
Announcing Paola's 2021-22 Season
The composer's season includes residencies, album releases, and world premiere performances.
Read More

PERFORMANCES

View all

The Red Book at Caramoor

Thalea Quartet performs the world premiere of Paola's string quartet 'The Red Book' at Caramoor on April 11, 2021

RECORDINGS

View all
September 10, 2021

Houses of Zodiac: Poems for Cello

On September 10, 2021, composer Paola Prestini and cellist Jeffrey Zeigler released 'Houses of Zodiac: Poems for Cello,' an album, film, and immersive video installation that combines spoken word, movement, music, and image to explore the intersection of mind, body, and nature.

view album

COMPOSITIONS

View all

Sensorium Ex

2024

/
Opera

Commissioned by Beth Morrison Projects and the Atlanta Opera, libretto by Brenda Shaughnessy Direction by Vita Tzykun, Choreography by Jerron Herman, Impact Producers EnactLab.

Old Man and The Sea

2023

/
Opera

Cello grand opera inspired by Hemmingway. Libretto by Royce Vavrek, direction by Karmina Šilec, produced by Beth Morrison Projects. Workshop and premiere, The Croatian National Theater.

Untitled, inspired by Film Stills

2021

/
Opera

Monodrama for mezzo soprano, piano and electronics. Co-commissioned by the Kennedy Center, San Diego Opera, The Momentary at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Arts and National Sawdust.

“New York retains a remarkable cadre of composers...chief among these is the singular figure of Paola Prestini”

– Financial Times

RECENT PRESS

View all
August 12, 2021

Interview: “Don’t think too much about the future, think about now”

Our Hatchers Tongues content aims to inspire. We seek out creators from all disciplines to share their stories, pains, successes and learnings. This month we caught up with composer and co-founder of National Sawdust Paola Prestini.

Hatchers
Read Article
FOR LATEST NEWS

Join the Mailing List

Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.