Celebrated as an “eloquent, poetic voice in contemporary music” (American Record Guide), Melinda Wagner’s esteemed catalog embodies music of exceptional beauty, power, and intelligence. She received widespread attention when her colorful Concerto for Flute, Strings, and Percussion earned the Pulitzer Prize in 1999. Since then, major works have included Concerto for Trombone for Joseph Alessi and the New York Philharmonic; a piano concerto, Extremity of Sky, commissioned by the Chicago Symphony for Emanuel Ax; and Little Moonhead, commissioned by the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra as part of its “New Brandenburgs” series. Extremity of Sky has been performed by Emanuel Ax with the National Symphony (on tour), the Toronto and Kansas City Symphonies, and the Staatskapelle Berlin.

 

Championed early by Daniel Barenboim, Wagner has received three commissions from the Chicago Symphony. The most recent, Proceed, Moon, was premiered by the CSO under the baton of Susanna Mälkki in 2017. Other recent performances have come from the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Brentano String Quartet, and the Grossman Ensemble, among others.

 

Melinda Wagner is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, where she currently serves as Vice President for Music. She was recently awarded the Fondation Prince Pierre de Monaco Young Audience Prize for her large-ensemble work Limbic Fragments (2024).