TJ Cole (b. 1993) is an American composer from Atlanta, currently studying at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia under Jennifer Higdon, David Ludwig, and Richard Danielpour.
Cole entered Interlochen Arts Academy for high school in 2010 where she studied under John Boyle Jr. and Cynthia Van Maanen. In 2012 she entered the Curtis Institute of Music where she studies composition under Jennifer Higdon. At Interlochen, Cole garnered the Neil Rabaut Memorial Scholarship, an honor which can be awarded to a single young composer during any given year. In 2011, she won the first annual Atlanta Music Club Composition Competition. From the ages of 6-12, she wrote a series of piano pieces and self-produced her first album entitled Solace (2005). Her second album, Anthology (2009) included her second set of original piano music.
Cole has been commissioned by the University of Georgia for their gymnastics team’s documentary film score, by the Lawrence Symphony Orchestra, and by the Kelly Writers House with the Curtis Institute of Music. Her work has also been performed by the Interlochen Arts Academy Orchestra, the Sewanee Symphony Orchestra, the Curtis Symphony Orchestra, ensemble39, and the Dover Quartet. Her orchestral works have been conducted under the batons of artists such as Octavio Más-Arocas, Vinay Parameswaran, and Kensho Watanabe.
Cole has also had master classes and/or lessons with composers Steven Stucky, Joan Tower, Marilyn Shrude, Shulamit Ran, Richard Danielpour, Krzysztof Penderecki, Roshanne Etezady, Matthias Pintscher, and Gabriela Lena Frank. Her work has also been coached by Curtis’ ensemble-in-residence, eighth blackbird.
TJ Cole will be in residence for the 2014 Cabrillo Festival season; her work Metropolis will be performed by the Festival Orchestra on Saturday, August 2, at the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium.
In her free time, she enjoys dancing, coloring, bike riding, and capturing photographs of the Philadelphian elderly community.
