Draft:Nina Shekhar

Nina Shekhar (born 1995) is an American composer and multimedia artist known for her exploration of identity, vulnerability, love, and laughter through her music. Her works are characterized by their boldness and intense personal expression, and she has been described as "tart and compelling" by The New York Times, "vivid" by The Washington Post , and an "orchestral supernova" by the LA Times.

Early Life and Education
Nina Shekhar was born in 1995 and is a first-generation Indian American from Detroit, Michigan. She pursued her undergraduate studies at the University of Michigan, where she earned dual degrees in music composition and chemical engineering. Shekhar continued her education at the University of Southern California, completing her graduate studies in composition. She is currently a PhD candidate in Music Composition at Princeton University.

Career
Shekhar's music has been commissioned and performed by numerous prestigious ensembles and orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, LA Philharmonic , Chicago Symphony Orchestra , Seattle Symphony , Nashville Symphony , Minnesota Orchestra , Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra , and the Louisville Orchestra. Her work has been featured at prominent venues such as Carnegie Hall, the Hollywood Bowl, the Kennedy Center, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Library of Congress.

Shekhar has received several awards and honors, including the 2021 Rudolf Nissim Prize, two ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer Awards (2015 and 2019 ), the 2022 BMI Student Composer Award , and the 2018 ASCAP Foundation Leonard Bernstein Award. She was Musical America's Artist of the Month in December, 2022.

Notable Works and Performances
Some of Shekhar's notable works include compositions for string orchestra, string quartet, clarinet and string quartet, and orchestra. Her music has been performed by leading artists and ensembles such as Eighth Blackbird, International Contemporary Ensemble , JACK Quartet , Alarm Will Sound , The Crossing , and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.

Recent and upcoming performances of her work include those by the New York Philharmonic, LA Philharmonic (with soloists Nathalie Joachim and Pamela Z) , Minnesota Orchestra, New World Symphony , and her Hollywood Bowl debut with the LA Philharmonic conducted by Lina González-Granados.

Teaching and Residencies
In addition to her composing career, Shekhar is an active educator. She is on the composition faculty at the Mannes School of Music at The New School and serves as a faculty mentor for Luna Composition Lab. She co-founded Brightwork newmusic's Project Beacon initiative and has held guest composer residencies at institutions such as New York University, University of Colorado-Boulder, Western Michigan University, and Portland State University.

Shekhar has also served as Composer-in-Residence for Young Concert Artists (2021-2023) and is currently the Composer-in-Residence for The Crossing and the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra's 2023-2024 Sound Investment Composer.

Personal Life
Nina Shekhar is a versatile performing artist, proficient as a flutist, pianist, and saxophonist. She has performed at the Detroit International Jazz Festival and as a soloist with the USC Thornton Symphony and the Lublin Philharmonic at the Poland International Piano Festival.

Shekhar's name is pronounced "NEE-nuh SHAY-ker," with her last name pronounced like "shaker" and spelled with two H's.

Shekhar often grapples with identity and disability in her compositions, and gives interviews and writes articles discussing implications of identity in classical music in particular.

Concert works
Shekhar's compositions showcase a diverse range of styles and themes, reflecting her bold and expressive musical voice. A full list of her concert works can be found on her official website.

Orchestra/Large Ensemble
 * "Lumina" for orchestra (2021)
 * "Turn Your Feet Around" for sinfonietta or chamber orchestra (2021)

Chamber/Small Ensemble
 * "Dear Abby" for string quartet (2020)
 * "Ice ‘n’ SPICE" for chamber ensemble (2020)
 * "Quirkhead" for voice and string quartet (2017)

Solo/Solo with Accompaniment Vocal
 * "Adrift" for flute (2020)
 * "Warm in My Veins" for solo violin (2021)
 * "Blush" for chorus (2021)
 * "Don't Beat A Word" for pop-rock voice, ensemble, and tape (2021)
 * "Pieces of You" for tenor and piano (2022)
 * "Vocalise" for piano (2021)