Zara Ali, Composer

Zara Ali (b. 1995) is a composer from Memphis, Tennessee. Her work is characterized by carefully woven microtonal harmonies, a delicate attention to timbre, and the translation of structural concepts (geometry, kinetics, temporality) into physical sounds. In 2022, she received the First Prize at the prestigious Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy Competition in Composition. Zara Ali is also a recipient of a JACK Studio Commission from the JACK Quartet and a recipient of the Robert H. Burns Prize in contemporary chamber music. Her music has been performed at Berlin’s Konzerthaus, the Tanglewood Music Festival, the Seoul International Computer Music Festival, the Royaumont Foundation, the Archipel Music Festival, and the Yellow Barn Music Festival, among other places. Zara Ali received her B.A. from Columbia University in 2018 and her M.M. in music composition from the Detmold Music Academy in 2022. She is currently based in Frankfurt.