MacArthur Fellows Program - Julia Wolfe

Julia Wolfe is a composer who combines influences from folk, classical, and rock genres in

works that are grounded in historical and legendary narratives. Often described as post-minimalist, Wolfe demonstrates an openness to sonic possibilities, with choral elements and instruments such as the mountain dulcimer, bagpipes, and body percussion often augmenting string and orchestral arrangements. Many of her works blur the line between music and theatrical experience.

Wolfe’s approach to source material varies from allusion to deconstruction and re-creation. For example, her string orchestra piece Cruel Sister (2004) is based on an old British ballad about one sister murdering the other over the attentions of a suitor, but rather than retelling or quoting from the original song, Wolfe’s piece represents the emotional arc of the story. Steel Hammer (2009), a work for voice and chamber ensemble, draws upon more than 200 versions of the legend of John Henry. Competing and contradictory versions are fragmented by Wolfe, then stitched back together and mixed with the sonorities of Appalachia to produce a rich musical world that also represents a new approach to the ballad.

https://www.macfound.org/fellows/974/