Paul Novak

The "spellbinding" (Washington Post) music of Chicago-based composer Paul Novak immerses listeners in shimmering and subtly crafted musical worlds full of color, motion, light, and magic. His recent projects engage with dreams and memory, queer identity, climate change and the natural world, and psychosomatic illness. Novak's 25/26 season includes premieres and performances by Orchestra of St. Luke's, International Contemporary Ensemble, Chicago Composers Orchestra, the Balourdet, JACK, Formosa, and Varo Quartets, ZOFO, Blackbox Ensemble, and more. His music has been heard at Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, New World Center, and Chicago's Symphony Center. He has received awards from the Barlow Foundation, ASCAP, BMI, American Academy of Arts and Letters, and more. He is the co-artistic director and flutist of Chicago-based ensemble Mycelium New Music, and is a PhD candidate at the University of Chicago.