# Tim Holt — Composer

A composer of terse and brittle virtuosity, Tim Holt's music has been performed across the United States and Europe. His current focus is adapting contemporary literary works into vocal music informed by the classical tradition.

Site: https://timholtmusic.com
Contact: https://timholtmusic.com/contact
Machine-readable index: https://timholtmusic.com/search.json
News feed: https://timholtmusic.com/rss.xml
Sitemap: https://timholtmusic.com/sitemap-index.xml
Topic index (works grouped by genre, instrumentation, literary source, collaborator, commission status, duration): https://timholtmusic.com/topics

## Works

- Anchorites (2025) — vocal; vocal ensemble; 10’. Based on texts by Tao Lin, Julian of Norwich, and John Berryman. https://timholtmusic.com/works/anchorites
- Nobody Is Ever Missing (2025) — opera; soprano, flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, piano, violin 1, violin 2, cello; 45’. Based on the novel by Catherine Lacey. https://timholtmusic.com/works/nobody-is-ever-missing
- Playground Poems (2024) — vocal; voice and continuo; 10’. Based on poems by Honor Levy https://timholtmusic.com/works/playground-poems
- Three Studies on the Human Form (2023) — chamber; Soprano, Violin, Cello; 6’. Based on texts by Vitruvius, Michelangelo, and Catherine Lacey. https://timholtmusic.com/works/three-studies-on-the-human-form
- ikebana 1 (2022) — solo; solo violin; 1’30’’. For solo violin. Premiered by Peter Sheppard Skærved at the George Wood Theatre, Goldsmiths, University of London. https://timholtmusic.com/works/ikebana-1
- Palo Seco (2022) — opera; voices and chamber ensemble; 15'. Selected for 2022 Original Vision opera workshop program. Premiered May 15, 2022. Directed by O-Lan Jones. https://timholtmusic.com/works/palo-seco
- Anywhere Everywhere (2020) — multimedia; voices and mixed ensemble; c. 20 minutes. Commissioned by the Houston-based ensemble Loop38 and premiered on Facebook Live and Youtube July 19, 2020. https://timholtmusic.com/works/anywhere-everywhere-38-loops
- man dies eroica eroica (2020) — chamber; Voice, Cello; 5'. Written in March of 2020 for cellist Daniel Gaisford. https://timholtmusic.com/works/man-dies-eroica-eroica
- Pacific Overlander (2018) — film; music and sound design; 1'. Spec ad for Pacific Overlander directed by John Belanger. https://timholtmusic.com/works/pacific-overlander
- Bernard Died (2015) — film; piano; 8'. Short film, directed by Andrea Massaro and written by Tony Lee. Funded by the Johns Hopkins’ student-run production company, Studio North. https://timholtmusic.com/works/bernard-died
- The Shape, Skeleton, & Foliage (2014) — opera; three voices and piano; 15'. A short opera based on a scenario in which a woman asks a plastic surgeon to change her face into a landscape. https://timholtmusic.com/works/the-shape-skeleton-and-foliage
- Sonata for solo guitar (2013) — solo; solo guitar; 12'. Written after discovering the music of Arthur Kampela, which led to a technique for improvising percussively on the guitar. https://timholtmusic.com/works/sonata-for-solo-guitar
- Morning Music (2011) — chamber; eight cellos; 8'. Commissioned by Thomasz Zieba, director of the Cellovoce ensemble, in 2011. Premiered that year at the European Musical Workshops in Kolobrzeg, Poland. https://timholtmusic.com/works/morning-music

## Upcoming performances

None currently scheduled.

## Recordings

- The Shape, Skeleton, & Foliage: LIVE https://timholtmusic.com/recordings/the-shape-skeleton-foliage-live
- Tim Holt: Anchorites https://timholtmusic.com/recordings/tim-holt-anchorites

## Projects

- Anywhere Everywhere: Video Series for Mind on Fire (2021) — I partnered with Mind on Fire to release 7 short films on their Patreon channel from November through December of 2021. https://timholtmusic.com/projects/anywhere-everywhere-mind-on-fire
- Album Art for "I hope we get a chance to visit soon" (2020) — My second album cover design for composer Michael Hersch. The libretto was built around email exchanges with his close friend, Mary O'Reilly, and we used these emails as a foundation for the visual language of the album as well. https://timholtmusic.com/projects/album-art-i-hope-we-get-a-chance-to-visit-soon
- Video Retrospective for Camerata Bern's Composer-in-Residence (2020) — A video retrospective edited for CAMERATA BERN based on Michael Hersch’s AGATHA, incorporating an interview with Hersch, the group’s photos, and musical excerpts. https://timholtmusic.com/projects/camerata-bern-retrospective
- Program Design for Kafka Fragments at SpectrumNYC (2019) — I designed this program for Ah Young Hong and Jacob Ashworth’s performance of The Kafka Fragments on December 3, 2019 at SpectrumNYC. https://timholtmusic.com/projects/kafka-fragments-program-design
- Social Media Campaign for Peabody Conservatory (2014) — The #MyImpromptu campaign was initiated as an effort to connect with prospective students in the lead up to our admissions application deadline. I generated the branded content on the Peabody Conservatory channels. https://timholtmusic.com/projects/peabody-social-media-campaign
- Art Direction for Opera Trailer (2018) — In September of 2018, I was approached to edit the trailer for a new production of Michael Hersch's opera, On The Threshold of Winter, directed by the opera's star, Ah Young Hong, with video design by Maxwell Bowman. https://timholtmusic.com/projects/on-the-threshold-of-winter-trailer
- Video Production for Pop Up Concerts at Johns Hopkins (2015) — On May 4, 2015 students from the Peabody Conservatory shared impromptu performances with the Hopkins community. I hired a crew of four student videographers from JHU Admissions to film the concerts, then collected their footage to edit into this video. https://timholtmusic.com/projects/pop-up-concerts-johns-hopkins
- Website Redesign for Mind on Fire (2019) — The Baltimore new music collective, Mind on Fire, approached me in early 2019 for a refresh of their original Squarespace site. https://timholtmusic.com/projects/mind-on-fire-website-redesign
- Video production for Season Highlights series (2015) — A video series to increase visibility and boost ticket sales for concerts presented by various departments within the Peabody Conservatory; the videos garnered some of the highest view counts on the Peabody Institute YouTube page. https://timholtmusic.com/projects/season-highlights-video-series
- Sound Installation at Lawndale Art Center (2016) — Houston-based artist and anthropologist, Lina Dib, incorporated my music into her four-channel sound work installed at the Lawndale Art Center from November 11 – December 22, 2016. https://timholtmusic.com/projects/o-o-the-day-after-tomorrow
- Music Video for The Vanishing Pavilions, Mv. II (2019) — A music video set to movement II of Michael Hersch’s The Vanishing Pavilions, initiated with an exploration of images from the Italian painter/sculptor Antonio Bernardo Fraddosio. https://timholtmusic.com/projects/vanishing-pavilions-music-video
- Web Design for "I hope we get a chance to visit soon" (2020) — In early 2020, I built this website for the streaming and CD release of Michael Hersch’s I hope we get a chance to visit soon. https://timholtmusic.com/projects/web-design-i-hope-we-get-a-chance-to-visit-soon

## Writing

- An Esoteric Reading of the Ars Nova (essay, 2021-09-24) — A EuroMAC10 conference talk proposing that the ars nova's rhythmic notation functioned as an esoteric knowledge system, read alongside the contemporaneous ritual-magic text the Ars Notoria. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/an-esoteric-reading-of-the-ars-nova
- I watched 10 Masterclass courses in a week and here is what I learned (essay, 2021-08-26) — I watched the Masterclasses of 10 artists and boiled down what I learned into some generalizations about the creative process. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/i-watched-10-masterclass-courses-in-a-week
- Poetics of the Fragment Conference (essay, 2021-06-19) — “A fragment, like a miniature work of art, has to be entirely isolated from the surrounding world and be complete in itself like a hedgehog” — Athenaeum Fragment 206 https://timholtmusic.com/writing/poetics-of-the-fragment-conference
- Here's a hammer for your thesis statement (essay, 2020-12-15) — This is a quick way to make a point in your writing. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/thesis-statement-structure
- The Utopian Syllabus (essay, 2019-08-01) — School can feel disorienting and esoteric. What say we embrace the fiction of the classroom? https://timholtmusic.com/writing/utopian-syllabus
- Making Dark Sounds Together (essay, 2019-05-07) — My program note for Ah Young Hong’s April 7 recital looks at works by Milton Babbitt, Georg Friedrich Haas, and Michael Hersch as essays in darkness and light. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/dark-sounds-ah-young-hong-recital-program
- Hand Exercises for Artists (essay, 2019-02-19) — As artists, we all make esoteric things with our hands. Here are some other esoteric things you can do with your hands to take care of your hands. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/hand-exercises-for-artists
- Sometimes a music video becomes a blood orange fever dream (media, 2019-01-28) — The problem of the torso— the root of everything cut off from everything— gives us an oblique way to think about music whose form is simultaneously so contained and yet chaotic. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/music-video-as-blood-orange-fever-dream
- Writing On Walls (essay, 2019-01-09) — For a concert in a unique venue, I wrote a program note in the form of an extended simile of faces and walls. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/writing-on-walls
- Meditation for Musicians: A Practical Guide (essay, 2018-11-28) — When I started getting curious about meditation, I was searching for concrete answers to questions like: What’s the point of this? How do I do it? How do I know it’s working? https://timholtmusic.com/writing/meditation-for-musicians
- Journal: Lyon (journal, 2018-11-22) — Every piece of the city is framed by some other piece. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/journal-lyon
- Doctorate Debriefing (essay, 2018-11-17) — It took me six years, but I can finally answer your burning questions, like: Should I pursue a doctorate in music? What even is a doctorate in music? https://timholtmusic.com/writing/doctorate-debrief
- Making music with Michael Hersch (media, 2018-11-11) — Editing the 2018 trailer for "On the Threshold of Winter" was an exercise in remixing Michael Hersch with Michael Hersch. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/making-music-with-michael-hersch
- Sehnsucht through Sound Design (media, 2018-01-13) — Working with director John Belanger, I confronted two linked questions. How should a composer think about sound design? And, how should a sound designer think about music? https://timholtmusic.com/writing/music-sound-design-for-pacific-overlander
- Journal: Baja (journal, 2017-10-14) — You become an expert at navigating the shadows under such a tremendous sun. you see your way through the city within these awkward patterns superimposed on the streets. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/journal-baja
- Searching for Zach Turpin's Story (feature, 2017-10-08) — Most of the press is quick to tout the needle-in-a-haystack aspect of Zachary Turpin’s research. However, a relentlessness belies this air of serendipity around his literary discoveries. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/zachary-turpin-profile-digital-humanities
- Journal: Montréal (journal, 2017-08-05) — I admired that most people wore unimpressive shoes but were beautiful despite and because of this. I walked the Jean-Talon every morning. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/journal-montreal
- video reel 2017 (media, 2017-07-25) https://timholtmusic.com/writing/video-reel-2017
- Lucid dreaming an opera (essay, 2016-11-08) — Let's follow blurry lines from a short opera I wrote into the philosophy of faces, the poetics of plastic surgery, and the art of lucid dreaming. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/lucid-dreaming-opera-shape-skeleton-foliage
- College of Charleston Student Profiles (feature, 2016-04-18) — A clip from a project for the College of Charleston's Department of Sociology and Anthropology. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/college-of-charleston-student-profiles
- Our Lady of Mercy "Yes I Can" program feature (feature, 2016-02-08) — Volunteer video work for Our Lady of Mercy Community Outreach in Charleston. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/our-lady-of-mercy-yes-i-can-program-feature
- Talking Process with Oscar Bettison (feature, 2015-08-17) — A pilot project profiling faculty of the Peabody Conservatory, filmed with So Percussion. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/peabody-faculty-artists-oscar-bettison
- Bernard Died Original Score (media, 2015-08-02) — A quick cut of music written for the short film Bernard Died, directed by Andrea Massaro and written by Tony Lee. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/bernard-died-original-music
- Wedding Video (media, 2015-06-25) — A nontraditional wedding video for a couple of close friends, cut to a remix of their first-dance song. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/wedding-video
- The Indigo Inn, Charleston (media, 2015-06-08) — Charleston, South Carolina is unique among tourist destinations. The city’s commitment to bridging its past and its future ensures a richness of experience for travelers and locals alike. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/indigo-inn
- Translations: Neruda's "Resurrecciones" (translation, 2015-04-24) — A translation of Pablo Neruda's "Resurrecciones." https://timholtmusic.com/writing/neruda-resurrections
- TIMHOLTMUSIC font (design, 2015-03-12) — I was in the market for an idosyncratic display font that captured my musical voice– a Futura with personality, I guess. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/timholtmusic-font
- Peabody Modern Orchestra (design, 2015-03-08) — For the Peabody Modern Orchestra, I experimented with a stark, contemporary look & feel while operating within John Hopkins' branding guidelines. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/design-for-peabody-modern-orchestra
- my heart comes undone (media, 2015-01-24) — A video for Judah Adashi's piece my heart comes undone, premiered at the New Music Gathering 2015 in San Francisco. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/my-heart-comes-undone
- Journal: Oklahoma (journal, 2014-09-17) — In the city of Oklahoma City, you can see everything. Maybe it's nothing you want to see. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/journal-oklahoma
- Dark Utopias: Music and Minor Literature (essay, 2014-08-15) — Minor literature refers to the work of a alien artist (estranged, foreign, &c) within a major language. I wonder about musical analogues for this. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/thoughts-on-a-minor-literature
- Summer mix (journal, 2014-07-24) — This playlist has been accompanying me on my morning train rides into Baltimore for the last few weeks now. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/summer-mix
- Hammer, pedestal, face, and hand (part 1) (essay, 2013-12-26) — There is a problem with music. Let's jump in here to discover the full scope of a musical note and the role of notation in defining the concept of music. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/hammer-pedestal-face-and-hand-part-1
- New music: solo flute (media, 2013-10-13) — Finally had a chance to lay down this flute piece and edit it. A big thanks goes out to the flautist, Andrew Foley, for enjoying the piece enough to hold onto it. https://timholtmusic.com/writing/peyote-dance

## Press

- Untitled Thought Project (Substack), "How to Time Travel" — The effect was absolutely brilliant https://timholtmusic.com/press/catherine-lacey-how-to-time-travel
- Washington Classical Review, "Mind on Fire presents a compelling and immersive interior journey" — an intimate theater piece on loneliness and self-exploration https://timholtmusic.com/press/washington-classical-review-nobody-is-ever-missing

## Topics

- Genre: vocal, opera, chamber, solo, multimedia, film
- Instrumentation & Theme: voice, ensemble, opera, strings, solo, winds, film, sound design, piano, guitar, cello
- Literary Source: Tao Lin, Julian of Norwich, John Berryman, Catherine Lacey, Honor Levy, Vitruvius, Michelangelo, Jessica Figueroa
- Collaborator: Loop38, Opera Études, Peabody Conservatory, Thomasz Zieba, Cellovoce ensemble, Peter Sheppard Skærved, Ah Young Hong, Conrad Harris, Coleman Itzkoff, Perri di Christina, Heather Morrison, Shelly Purdy, Kayleigh Sprouse, Kaylee Parker, Cameron Falby, T.J. Callahan, Gracie Carney, Peter Kibbe, Stephanie Ray, Jenny Tscheulin, Liz Hill, Anchorites, Mind on Fire, Taylor Boykins
- Commission Status: Independent, Commissioned
- Duration: Under 10 minutes, Over 30 minutes, 10–20 minutes