Short bio:

Eleanor Aversa writes music about resilience. Her FortEtudes have been performed by soloists from the US Air Force Band and San Francisco Symphony. Her 40-minute piece about union leader Mother Jones has been performed in Boston, Canton, and Philadelphia, most recently with Tony-nominated actress Maureen Brennan reading the part of Mother Jones. Her orchestra piece Hero’s Welcome, about everyday bravery, won the Northridge Composition Prize; other awards include the Brian Israel Prize for chamber music as well as awards and grants from ASCAP, the Massachusetts Arts Council, and the American Composers Forum. She is a professor of Composition at Berklee College of Music.

Full bio:

Eleanor Aversa writes music about resilience. Her music has been described as “shimmering” (New York Times) “ethereal” (Society for New Music) and “lustrous” (San Francisco Classical Voice). Her FortEtudes have been performed by soloists from the US Air Force Band and San Francisco Symphony. Her 40-minute piece about union leader Mother Jones has been performed in Boston, Canton, and Philadelphia, most recently with Tony-nominated actress Maureen Brennan reading the part of Mother Jones.

Her album “Because He Was a Weasel: Songs for Courage, Comfort, and Fun” teaches kids in a fun way about naming and breathing through difficult feelings and recognizing that everyone has inherent worth and strength. Singers include Broadway tenor Dan Callaway, 2025 Grammy nominee Shradha Ganesh, and Nadia Washington (Jazz at Lincoln Center). More on the album here.

With an equal enthusiasm for all the instruments of the orchestra, Eleanor has written pieces performed at the International Double Reed Society Conference and the American String Teachers Association National Conference. Percussionist Tom Kolor performed her work Sonora at the June in Buffalo Festival, and trombone trio Skyline Bones premiered Of Time at the National Opera Center. Honors include the Northridge Composition Prize (Hero’s Welcome for orchestra) and the Brian M. Israel Award (Movement for String Quartet), as well as awards and grants from ASCAP, the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and the American Composers Forum. She has held fellowships from MacDowell, the I-Park Foundation, and the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts.

Her music has been performed by flutist Amanda Baker of the Janus Trio, cellist David Requiro, violinist Ellen dePasquale, clarinetist Jean Kopperud, the Juventas New Music Ensemble, the Rawlins Trio, and the Galan Trio, among others. She has collaborated with members of the Aeolian Chamber Players, Alarm Will Sound, the Daedalus Quartet, the Momenta Quartet, Network for New Music, and the NM Philharmonic.

Dr. Aversa is an Associate Professor of Composition at Berklee College of Music. Prior to that she served on the piano faculty of the Settlement Music School and was an instructor of theory at the University of Pennsylvania. She holds degrees from Princeton, CUNY Queens College (Marvin Hamlisch Composition Award, Herbert Sukoff Memorial Award in Composition), and the University of Pennsylvania (Benjamin Franklin Fellowship, David Halstead Music Prize). She is grateful to her composition teachers: Bruce Saylor, James Primosch, Jay Reise, and Anna Weesner. She lives with her husband in the Boston area.