short bio
Darcy Copeland (b. 1996) is a composer based in Boston, MA. Her compositional work is motivated by a desire to question the human experience through tactile and embodied exploration. Having been drawn to both the aural and physical aspects of sound from a young age through the voice, her approach to composition today continues to be informed by a primal curiosity of the physical world and what it means to be alive within it.
In addition to composition, Darcy is also a cellist, vocalist, electronic musician, and researcher, exploring topics related to music & environment, embodiment, ecological humanism, techno-feminism, eco-feminism, and sonic activism. She holds a Master of Music in composition from the University of Washington and a Bachelor of Music in composition from Columbia College Chicago. She is currently pursuing a PhD in composition at Harvard University, studying with Chaya Czernowin.
long bio
Darcy Copeland (b. 1996) is a composer based in Boston, MA. Described as “rare and pure” (Cacophony) and “captivating and relevant” (IYMC jury), her compositional work is motivated by a desire to question the human experience through tactile & embodied exploration. Having been drawn to both the aural & physical aspects of sound from a young age through the voice, her approach to composition today continues to be informed by a primal curiosity of the physical world and what it means to be alive within it.
Darcy is the composer-in-residence for .alfabet ensemble’s 2023 season, and has recently received an Engaged Student grant through Harvard University’s Radcliffe Institute to compose a new work for double bass and electronics communicating the devastation of climate change. Some of her other recent residencies and projects include a commission by Loadbang ensemble premiered in 2021 (NYC); a fellowship with the Luxembourg Composition Academy to culminate in a premiere of a new work performed at the Rainy Days Festival (Luxembourg); a fellowship at New England Conservatory’s Summer Institute for Contemporary Performance Practice (SICPP); and a fellowship with .alfabet institute’s precept.concept.percept composition workshop. Additionally, she was the recipient of the grand prize for composition in the International Youth Music Competition in 2021 for c a s c a d e s, a finalist in the ASCAP Foundation Young Composer Award 2021, and the winner of Impulse New Music Festival’s New Voices call for scores, which culminated in a presentation of bluet (i): aporia by LA Philharmonic principal cellist Robert DeMaine.
While working primarily with acoustic chamber ensembles, she also works with Ableton, Max/MSP, SuperCollider, effects pedals, and video to create electronic, electroacoustic, and multimedia works, and is particularly drawn to live sound processing. Regardless of medium, her works carry common elements of noise, fragility, and timbral exploration while exposing conceptual themes of identity, vulnerability, and perception. Currently, her compositional interests lie in drawing attention to the act of embodied listening, sonic activism, and sound ecologies.
In addition to composition, Darcy is also a cellist, vocalist, electronic musician, and researcher, exploring topics related to music & environment, embodiment, ecological humanism, and sonic activism. She holds a Master of Music in composition from the University of Washington and a Bachelor of Music in composition from Columbia College Chicago. She is currently pursuing a PhD in composition at Harvard University, studying with Chaya Czernowin.
artists statement
I find it extraordinary that a sound, when heard in just the right way, can make time stand still. And in this stillness it’s as though the world is both stretched and compressed and everyone sharing in this moment is feeling something real, something captivating, in a sense of togetherness.
I want to celebrate this tension of temporality that unfolds within such experiences. I want to celebrate the human, the individuality of sound and how it was made. I want to treasure the small, the eccentric, the fragile, and the jarring; find beauty in the mundane, the ephemeral, and the violent.
Much of my recent work has to do with sonic ecology, sonic activism, and deep listening. My artistic and musical interests range from cybernetics, environmentalism, embodiment, and experiences of spirituality. I am deeply concerned with palpability; texture and timbre are primary parameters in my work. My recent work c a s c a d e s for string quartet, video, and live electronics brings attention to the devastating cyclical growth of biofeedback loops which contribute to the further ravaging of the planet due to climate change. YOU LOOK INTO THE SUN for small ensemble seeks to examine the interaction of tone as though it breathes, as well as the ways that fragile smallness can manifest vast experiences of space.
Ultimately, I want to sculpt sonic experiences that reflect the simultaneous suppleness, subtlety, and violence of what it means to be human in a world being ravaged.
