Interview with Composer Molly Joyce

Composer and performer Molly Joyce has been deemed one of the “most versatile, prolific and intriguing composers working under the vast new-music dome” by The Washington Post. Her work is concerned with disability as a creative source. She has an impaired left hand from a previous car accident, and seeks to explore disability through composition, performance, collaboration, community engagement, and further mediums. We recently sat down with her to get insight into her life, work, and what's next. Enjoy!

Molly, we are so excited to feature your composition Fresh at our May series. Can we start at the beginning? How did you get into music? And what led you to composing?

I started music around the age of seven with violin lessons and the traditional Suzuki string track. Around that time I was involved in a car accident that nearly amputated my left hand, and therefore transitioned from various musical instruments that accommodated my left hand's physicality more, such as cello and trumpet. Eventually I was drawn to composition, and I gravitated towards composition so much because I did not have to strongly consider what my left hand could or could not do. It all felt like a big video game to me, with the satisfaction of immediately hearing back what you wrote via the computer.

Your work Fresh, which was commissioned in 2014, is said to be inspired by your memories of being in your high school marching band. What should our concert audience listen for in the work?

Certainly the snare drum part/rhythms, and how they are eventually taken up by the full orchestra.

You have said your work focuses on disability as a creative source. Can you tell us more about how that influences your approach to making music?

It influences anything and everything. As described above, I acquired my disability through a car accident. Therefore I love investigating disability narratively, such as exploring the narrative consequences of physical loss and absence. I also love exploring access as aesthetic and creatively incorporating accessibility facets such as screen reader voices and sign language interpretation. Lastly, I love experimenting with music technology to find instruments to fit non-normative bodies.

Your TED talk, Going Beyond Ability was incredibly engaging. Can you please tell us the story  and background of your Magnus toy organ that was featured in that presentation?

Thank you! I bought the organ during undergraduate studies in New York, and I like to joke it was my "ticket to Brooklyn." It was something weird, out-of-tune, cute, and an item that I thought would be a great accessory at my future Brooklyn apartment parties. While it has traveled with my to several locations since, initially I viewed it as a toy/accessory and not significant enough to pursue a solo practice with. It has limited range and also a dryer sound, and therefore I would often play with other musicians or dancers. However this relationship shifted once I started graduate studies and started performing on the organ more. This was around a time that I was discovering disability studies and the rich world of disability arts, and realized that the organ was made for my body, specifically since it has chord buttons on the left-hand side which suit my impaired handed well.

What would be your dream musical collaboration?

Beach House!

Amongst many, many other qualifications, you are a graduate of both Julliard and Yale School of Music and are currently a doctoral fellow at the University of Virginia, focusing on Composition and Computer Technologies. What do you hope to do after your program?

My dream is to hold an interdisciplinary teaching and research position focusing on the arts and disability studies. I believe there is much potential in the intersection of disability and creativity, and it always excites me to explore these in collaboration with students and faculty.

Hear Fresh at our 2023 Season Finale on May 6th and 8th! GET TICKETS