Long Biography [537 words]
Christina Volpini (she/her) is a Canadian composer based in Hamilton (Dish with One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant/Between the Lakes Purchase) and Toronto (Tkarón:to). Her music has been described as “richly textural, physical, and affecting” (Martin Arnold), “very nuanced, rustling and whispering” (Neomemoire) and “focused intently on the subtle sounds that fall between the cracks.” (Ludwig Van Toronto).
Her music manifests affective timbral and temporal spaces that gradually unfold, opening into the experience of a fragile, breathing present. Imbued with an aqueous, ephemeral character, her work explores subtle variation in intonation, found objects, instrumental textures, liminal spaces, and psychoacoustic phenomena. She develops pieces through a process of creative discovery with other artists, crafting works for specific spaces and performers. Christina composes in a variety of mediums, including orchestral, chamber, electronic and acousmatic music, as well as and film music for B-Horror movies.
Christina has been commissioned by Esprit Orchestra, Continuum Contemporary Music, Ensemble, Array Ensemble, Ensemble Bakalari, percussionist Ryan Scott, Duo AIRS, and Caution Tape Music Collective with performances in Toronto, Montréal, Ottawa, Vancouver, Edmonton, New York and throughout the U.S. east coast. She has collaborated with artists including Jumblies Theatre, Echéa Quartet, and guitarist Rob MacDonald, among others. Her work has been featured by organizations including the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, Soundstreams and The Music Gallery, and supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Arts Council, and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, and the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Music Media and Technology (CIRMMT). She is recipient of SOCAN Foundation Awards for Young Composers in 2020, winning first prize in the Chamber Ensemble category and third in the Large Ensemble category.
An avid capacity builder in arts spaces, Christina has demonstrated commitment to social responsibility and expanding access to the arts. She was Co-Executive Administrator for the Montréal Contemporary Music Lab (MCML), then became a core organizer for the Toronto Creative Music Lab (TCML). Each served as important community-led workshop for early-career artists with an emphasis on peer mentorship and collaboration. Both artist collectives gained significant community support with TCML welcoming over 120 participating artists in four years. Christina holds a Graduate Certificate in Arts Administration and Cultural Management from Humber College. Since 2020, she has been a board member of The Music Gallery and she currently acts as Operations Manager of Continuum Contemporary Music.
Christina completed a Master of Composition at McGill University in 2016 with advisor John Rea. She also acted as a research assistant in the Music Perception and Cognition Lab under the supervision of Stephen McAdams, where she contributed to a multi-year project investigating psychological foundations for a theory of orchestration.
As an arts educator, Christina has mentored students in a variety of music topics. She was the composer mentor of Continuum Contemporary Music’s Teen Composer Award for the 19-20 and 20-21 Seasons. She has acted as composer mentor for Esprit Orchestra’s Composer in the Classroom program (2021) and Ontario Resonance program (2017), guiding high school students in the composition process. She was a teaching assistant in the McGill Digital Composition Studio and from the summers of 2014-2017, she acted as Academy Coordinator at the Niagara Symphony Orchestra’s Summer Music Camp.
Christina is originally from Niagara Falls, Ontario.
Updated November 2021