biography 𓇼 ⋆｡˚ 𓆝⋆｡˚ 𓇼
Ella Kaale (b. 2003) is a composer and cellist based in Los Angeles whose work uses collage, deconstruction, and extreme contrasts in its search for immersion and catharsis. She loves to tinker with acoustic sound colors and is never afraid to make an instrument buzz differently than it was intended. She likens her creative processes to weaving tapestries or following treasure maps, digging for found musical objects and folk histories. The resulting pieces are synthesized as a patchwork of cultural references and a unique atlas of sound. Ella is frequently inspired by the natural world and how humans interact with it, particularly in deserts and oceans.
Ella attended the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music’s Conductors/Composers Workshop, wherein her work “Bubble-Net” was premiered in back-to-back performances by rising conductors Andrew J. Kim and Yun Cao. In Hear Now Music Festival’s 13th Season, Ella’s orchestral work “seawall blvd” was performed by the UCLA Philharmonia at Schoenberg Hall. “seawall blvd” was premiered by the USC Thornton Symphony on the New Music for Orchestra concert, conducted by Donald Crockett at USC’s Bovard Auditorium. Her 4-hand prepared piano piece “baby mine” was recently featured on Score Follower. She is an alumna of Hidden Valley Music Seminars Emerging Composers Intensive, the Norfolk New Music Workshop, Composing in the Wilderness—Denali National Park, New Music on the Point, the New York Youth Symphony Composition Program, Carnegie Hall’s NYO-USA Composer Apprenticeship, MATA Jr. Festival, and the Curtis Institute of Music Young Artist Summer Program.
Ella’s music has been performed by the Cabrillo Festival Orchestra, USC Thornton Symphony, UCLA Philharmonia, the Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles, the Living Earth Show, TAK Ensemble, Norfolk Contemporary Ensemble, CORVUS, Hub New Music, Pacific Chamber Orchestra, the National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America, Dolce Suono Ensemble, the New York Youth Symphony Jazz Ensemble, the Bergamot Quartet, Schroeder Umansky Duo, and flautist Mimi Stillman. Her honors include the Sadye J. Moss Endowed Musical Composition Prize, the Presser Undergraduate Scholar Award, a YoungArts merit Award, a Luna Composition Lab Honorable Mention, and the Texas Music Scholar Award.
As a Teaching Artist for the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra (LACO) Meet the Music program, Ella teaches composition in Los Angeles classrooms and mentored musicians from the Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles, resulting in a premiere performance at Walt Disney Concert Hall. Kaale recently graduated with a B.M. in Composition at the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music, where she was named a Presser Scholar, Outstanding Graduate in Composition, and twice Most Valuable Player in Composition. Her pedagogues include Alex Berko, Christopher Trapani, Ted Hearne, Andrew Norman, and Donald Crockett. She is continuing her studies at USC with a fully-funded M.M. and Aural Skills Teaching Assistantship.
When not composing, Ella can be found exploring California tide pools, watching Jeopardy!, or playing frisbee with her corgi, Laika. A fun fact about Ella is that she has visited 25 U.S. National Parks and hopes to see all of them someday.
Ella’s last name is pronounced “Kah-lee”. She proudly hails from Galveston County, Texas.