Olivia Jones is an experimental improviser, clarinetist and composer who has performed with International Contemporary Ensemble (NYC), SoundSCAPE New Music Festival (Europe) & Ensemble Evolution (NYC), has been an Ensemble Mise-En resident composer (NYC) and has composed numerous electroacoustic works including with the Center for Computer Research in Music & Acoustics, Stanford (California).
In 2022 Olivia founded NYC-based piano, clarinet and voice trio Shrew Brew to commission new works by gender-underrepresented composers, including a premiere performance of their composition
:: Virago ::. They released a studio recording of Olivia’s four-movement composition Eunoia with Argentinian vibraphonist Pauline Roberts - to be premiered at Trinity Chapel, Melbourne in 2024, and their debut solo electroacoustic album :: mxm ::, and composed a new work for voice and electronics Flashover for premiere by acclaimed new music soprano Tony Arnold in Italy.
In 2023 Olivia’s compositions received premiere performances with SoundSCAPE New Music Festival (Switzerland) for pierrot + percussion and American Modern Ensemble (New York) for wind quartet + harp. In September 2023, Olivia attended the Australian Art Orchestra’s Creative Music Intensive for experimental improvisers. In December 2023, they were supported by a grant from the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council to curate and produce two nights of experimental music at Arts on Site (NYC) for their project !$@%!
In 2024, Olivia will attend the Banff Sonic Arts & Jazz workshop (Alberta, Canada), New Music on the Point (Vermont), Mostly Modern Festival (Netherlands and the US) and the International Creative Collaborators Workshop with Kris Davis and Angelica Sanchez at Bard College (New York). Olivia also has an upcoming funded residency with their electric bassoon and bass clarinet duo at Billilla Estate (Melbourne, Australia) in which the musicians will respond sonically to the environmental contexts of the historic grounds through a live sonic art installation conceived and implemented by Olivia.
2024 performances of Olivia’s compositions include new music for Horizon Ensemble (Boston), Dior Quartet (Toronto), Neave Trio (Netherlands) and Sydney Contemporary Orchestra (Sydney) and a studio recording of their piece The Dark and Sacred Night for two clarinets to be released on Aventino Records (Italy). Olivia’s work on themes of motherhood, mental health and gender identity continue in 2024 with the premiere presentation in Sioux Falls (South Dakota) of :: Leo :: an electroacoustic piece from their 2022 album :: mxm ::. Olivia performs regularly in Melbourne at Make it up Club and the Brunswick Green with various local chamber ensembles while also hosting visiting artists for performances at their home in Brighton Beach.
At Melbourne University (Australia) School of Jazz and Improvisation, Olivia holds PhD candidature to experiment with handmade Arduino synthesisers, live code, clarinet processing and Ableton. This is part of their research on the history and sociology of improvised electronic music seen through a Queer, Feminist and Anti-racist lens. In addition to PhD candidature Olivia holds their Master of Music: Performer-Composer from The New School, New York where they studied with such innovative mentors as Fay Victor, Darius Jones, Joshua Rubin, Elliot Cole and Ingrid Laubrock. Olivia's current PhD supervisors are Dylan Van Der Schyff and Anthony Lyons.