Irish composer Emma O’Halloran is driven by a deep interest in joy, wonder, hope, and connection. Her music aims to capture the magic of what it means to be human. Freely blending acoustic and electronic elements, Emma has written for a diverse range of settings, including folk musicians, chamber ensembles, turntables, laptop orchestras, symphony orchestras, opera, and theatre. Her work has been praised as “intensely beautiful” (Washington Post) and “unencumbered, authentic, and joyful” (I Care If You Listen).

Known for her distinctive ability to fuse pop, rock, and electronic music with the colours and textures of acoustic instruments, Emma’s compositions have reached a broad audience. They have been featured at renowned festivals such as Classical NEXT, PODIUM Esslingen, New Music Dublin, Tokyo’s Born Creative Festival, and Bang on a Can LOUD Weekend. Her music has been performed by notable ensembles, including Crash Ensemble, Friction Quartet, Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra, ensemble reflektor, PRISM Saxophone Quartet, and the National Symphony Orchestra, among others.

In recent years, Emma’s passion for storytelling has expanded into multidisciplinary projects like soundwalks and opera. She has composed works for Irish National Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, and Beth Morrison Projects. Her recent operas, Trade and Mary Motorhead, received rave reviews from performances at LA Opera and New York’s Prototype Festival, with the LA Times calling her “a kind of modern-day Monteverdi.”

Emma holds a Ph.D. in Music Composition from Princeton University and currently works as a freelance composer.