biography
The music of Ella Kaale (b. 2003) is perpetually chasing cathartic release, characterized by collagism, abstraction, and polarity. Sonically, she explores non-conventional techniques of acoustic instruments and dramatic spectrums of volume, pacing, and timbre.
Kaale was ecstatic to attend the 2024 Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music’s Conductors/Composers Workshop, wherein her work “Bubble-Net” was premiered in back-to-back performances by rising conductors Andrew J. Kim and Yun Cao. In the spring of 2024, Kaale’s orchestral work “seawall blvd” was performed by the UCLA Philharmonia led by Neal Stulberg at Schoenberg Hall as part of the Hear Now Music Festival’s 13th Season. “seawall blvd” was premiered by the USC Thornton Symphony on their 2023 New Music for Orchestra concert, conducted by Donald Crockett at USC’s Bovard Auditorium. Her 4-hand prepared piano piece “baby mine” was recently featured on Score Follower. As a 2021 Composer Apprentice for Carnegie Hall’s National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America, her “Eyes Like the Morning Star” was conducted by Julie Desbordes in the Performing Arts Center of Purchase College. She is an alumna of the Norfolk New Music Workshop (studying with Martin Bresnick), Composing in the Wilderness—Denali National Park, New Music on the Point, the New York Youth Symphony Composition Program (studying with Kyle Blaha and Jake Landau), Dolce Suono Ensemble’s ComposerLab: Young American Composers, MATA Jr. Festival (studying with Anna-Louise Walton), and the Curtis Institute of Music Young Artist Summer Program, (studying with David Serkin Ludwig, Wang Jie, et al.) as well as a two-time alumna of the American Festival for the Arts (AFA) Summer Music Festival Composers Institute, where she twice participated in the Houston Ballet Academy Composer-Choreographer Collaboration (studying with Aaron Alon, Brian Herrington, George Heathco, and Richard Ford). Kaale returned to AFA in the summer of 2022 as an Alumni Intern (and emergency auxiliary percussionist).
Her music has been performed by the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra, USC Thornton Symphony, UCLA Philharmonia, TAK Ensemble, Norfolk Contemporary Ensemble, CORVUS, Hub New Music, Pacific Chamber Orchestra, the National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America, Dolce Suono Ensemble, the New York Youth Symphony Jazz Ensemble, the Bergamot Quartet, Schroeder Umansky Duo, and flautist Mimi Stillman. Kaale’s honors include a Semi-Finalist for the American Composers Orchestra EarShot Readings with River Oaks Chamber Orchestra, a YoungArts merit Award, a Luna Composition Lab Honorable Mention, the Texas Music Scholar Award, and the AFA Composition Faculty Excellence Award.
Kaale is currently pursuing her B.M. in Composition at the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music. As a Teaching Artist Assistant for the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra (LACO) Meet the Music program, she teaches composition in the Los Angeles Unified School District. An active participant in the USC music community and a Thornton Student Ambassador, Kaale has been a member of the Thornton Student Council, the USC Oriana and Suara Choirs, and Pi Kappa Lambda Music Honor Society. In 2023, she received the honor of Most Valuable Player for the Composition Department. Her pedagogues include Alex Berko, Christopher Trapani, Ted Hearne, Andrew Norman, and currently, Donald Crockett. She is a Co-Founder and the President of Thornton Composers Ensemble (TCE), a collective of composer-performers at USC curating concerts of new music.
Her non-classical influences include Taylor Swift, Phoebe Bridgers, Adele Adkins, ABBA, Weyes Blood, Chiura Obata, David Wojnarowicz, Keith Haring, Felix Gonzales-Torres, Vincent Van Gogh, Jim Henson, Nam June Paik, Ansel Adams, and Ana Mendieta.
When not composing, Ella can be found playing cello in her friends’ projects, watching Jeopardy!, or napping with her pet corgi, Laika. Ella’s last name is pronounced “Kah-lee”. She proudly hails from League City, Texas.