2024/25 Underscore Winning Composers

Described as “a force multiplier with more talents than time” (PATRON Magazine), whose music is “alternately celestial and dark” (John Schaefer, WNYC New Sounds), Anuj Bhutani is a quickly emerging composer, performer, vocalist, and producer whose music often features visceral grooves; ethereal, meditative spaces; a combination of acoustic instruments and electronics, narrative depth, and genre-fluidity. As a first-generation Indian-American, Bhutani’s work is focused on liminal spaces, and as such is often highly interdisciplinary, engaging with theater, dance, and film while drawing on his musical background in classical, emo/screamo, ambient, singer/songwriter, and electronic music, resulting in wholly unique, genre- and culturally-fluid pieces that that firmly situate the listener between multiple musical worlds at once. 

His work has been presented by Beth Morrison Projects and LA Performance Practice, and at venues including National Sawdust, So Laboratories, the Banff Centre, Tuesdays @ Monk Space, Unwound Sound, the DiMenna Center for Classical Music, Oracle Egg, USC’s Visions + Voices series, and more.

Among other awards, he’s won Chamber Music America’s Classical Commissioning Grant, an ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer Award, and been selected for American Composer’s Orchestra’s Earshot, NewAm Composer’s Lab, Banff Centre’s Evolution: Classical, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival’s New Music Workshop at Yale School of Music. His work has been commissioned or performed by Ashley Bathgate, USC Thornton Symphony, Khemia Ensemble, 240 Northern, Raleigh Civic Symphony, Metropolis Ensemble, to name a few. He earned his master’s degree at University of Southern California where he was awarded Outstanding Graduate in Composition and his bachelor’s degree at University of North Texas.

Composer Kerrith Livengood’s music has been described as "an escapade of wild effusions" (Bloomington Herald-Times) and "sketchy-seeming" (New York Times). Her music has been performed at SEAMUS, KISS 2018, ACO’s SONiC Festival, June in Buffalo, Bargemusic, CCM’s MusicX festivals, the North American Saxophone Alliance annual conference, the Atlantic Music Festival, the Contemporary Undercurrent of Song series, the Cortona Sessions, the Charlotte New Music Festival, and Alia Musica Pittsburgh’s Conductors Festival. She has composed works for the JACK Quartet, Third Angle Ensemble, Duo Cortona, Altered Sound Duo, mezzo-soprano Jennifer Beattie and pianist Adam Marks, soprano Amy Petrongelli, Harry Partch's Adapted Guitar I performed by Charles Corey, Ligament, and the h2 Quartet. Kerrith’s music features unexpected musical forms, controlled randomness, lyricism, improvisation, noise, and humor. Kerrith has been composer-in-residence at the Charlotte Festival of New Music, Music in Bloom Festival, Artists at Albatross Reach, the Osage Arts Community, I-Park, and Copland House. Her solo album of ambient electronic Sailor Moon-themed pieces, In The Name of the MOON, recently was released on Neuma Records. She is a co-founder and original flutist for the new music collective Alia Musica Pittsburgh, and has premiered many new works by young composers alongside members of the JACK Quartet, eighth blackbird and the American Modern Ensemble. Kerrith is also an adventurous experimentalist who has played bird songs while sitting in a tree, started a “noise cult”, worn a towel as concert attire, and performed in concert with Anthony Braxton and Renee Baker. She is a native of Springfield, Missouri; graduated from the University of Pittsburgh, where she studied with Eric Moe, Mathew Rosenblum, Amy Williams and Marcos Balter; and previously taught at the University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign). Kerrith is Managing Director of the New Music On The Point Festival, an annual summer festival for young composers and performers.

Arnau Brichs is a composer, pianist, and electronic music producer from Barcelona. His music explores a wide range of expression, from intimate piano and synthesizer pieces to the vast soundscapes of symphonic orchestras. His classically inspired compositions blend acoustic instruments with experimental electronics, both digital and analogue.

Arnau studied contemporary classical composition at the Royal Academy of Music in London, where he graduated with first-class honors as a full ABRSM scholarship holder. His work has earned international recognition, including the PRIX ÉLAN 2024 in Paris, where his orchestral piece Degrees of Presence won unanimous praise from the jury, orchestra, and audience. He has also received accolades such as the WCSMS Promising Young Composers Competition (Philadelphia, USA) and the Eric Coates Prize (London, UK). His compositions have been performed by ensembles including the Orchestre National d’Île-de-France (Paris), the Uusinta Ensemble (Finland), the Locrian Chamber Players (New York City, USA), and the Lucerne Festival Contemporary Orchestra (Switzerland).

As an electronic musician, Arnau works with modular synthesizers, drum machines, and custom-built digital tools that allow him to manipulate acoustic sounds in new and innovative ways. He has coined terms like “aural deepfakes”, “presence” and “invisible electronics” to describe his approach to sound. His open-source software, developed for his own music, has become widely popular online, with over 10,000 downloads to date.

Arnau began his musical journey with jazz piano mentorship under Chano Domínguez and Marina Albero, and classical training at the IEA Oriol Martorell in Barcelona. As a performer, he has appeared at venues such as the Ateneu Barcelonès, Fundació Joan Miró (Festival Lluerna), CaixaForum Barcelona, UTOPIA 46, and the International Music Festival of Cadaqués.

Currently, Arnau is a Composer in Residence for 2024-2025 at the prestigious IRCAM in Paris, where he is developing a new work for oboe, symphonic orchestra, and electronics to be premiered by the Orchestre National d’Île-de-France at Festival ManiFeste in June 2025.

Sofía Matus Cancino (b.1994) is a composer and digital artist whose work explores the convergence of visual music, embodied sound, and algorithmic composition. Matus studied piano at the Conservatory of Music of the State of Mexico (COMEM, 2007-12). She graduated with honors from both the B.A. in Digital Art (UAEMEX, 2012-17) and the M.A. in Music Technology, at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. (2020-22). She is a former member of the INTAC network (International Art Collaborations 2015-18) being the facilitator and mentor of the collective in Mexico. Within INTAC, she collaborated with students and faculty at several Universities, such as TAMK(FIN), OCADu(CAD), and the Osaka University of Arts(JP).

Her work has been showcased at contemporary music and visual art festivals such as SEAMUS, NodoCCS, Sound: Frame, Visiones Sonoras, PRISMS, and Music by Women Festival among others.

Sofía has studied with renowned composers such as Rodrigo Sigal, Hugo Solís, João Pedro Oliveira, and Fernanda Navarro. She has been honored with composition awards from Arizona State University and the Ministry of Culture of the State of Mexico. Currently, she is a Doctoral Candidate and a Teaching Assistant at Arizona State University, where she holds a Presidential Graduate Assistantship.

Ben Gaunt is a UK-based composer, sonic artist, and improvisor. He has been nominated for an Ivor Novello Award and a British Composer Award. His music is performed frequently in the UK and around the world, and he has worked with London Symphony Orchestra, Grimethorpe Colliery Band, London Sinfonietta, Psappha, and many other outstanding professional musicians. He is Professor in Composition at Leeds Conservatoire. He recently studied Bouffon (clowning) at École Philippe Gaulier in France.

Thomas Pennisi approached music by the academic and private study of classical guitar ever since he was a child under the guidance of Luca Indelli, Aldo Guarisco and Stefano Di Fonzo. After his highschool duties he decided to enter the Composition class in the Conservatory of Como in 2018 and he’s currently attending his graduating three-year period as a composer, studying with Vittorio Zago, Federico Gardella, Pasquale Corrado (current tutor). As a student he has also attended masterclasses and laboratories in various fields of music and medias.

In 2022 he’s selected finalist in the “5th European Composer Competition” by the Franz Schubert Konzervatorium in Vienna and awarded the 2nd prize in the “8th Vienna Composer Competition 2022” by the Academia Musica in Vienna with his piece Synæsthesiæ – I. Silk for Bass clarinet and Cello.

In 2023 he’s selected by Divertimento Ensemble to participate in the guitar composition workshop followed by Elena Casoli with two final concerts in 2024 in Milan (Fabbrica del Vapore - Divertimento Ensemble headquarter) and Bern (Hochschule der Künste).

In 2024 he is selected finalist in the “3rd call for scores” by the Cadenza Contemporary Orchestra in Baku and his music is workshopped in a public reading session at the International Mugham Center of Azerbaijan.

In 2024 he’s awarded the 1st prize in the “2nd Mansurian International Competition” and invited to the Final Gala-Concert at the Komitas Museum Institute in Yerevan with his piece To the moon for Soprano and Alto Flute.

In 2024 he’s selected in the call for scores by Fundaciò ACA in Mallorca and is commissioned a piece for piano and cello for a concert in November during the Festival Encontres de Compositors -Composition Workshop Mallorca 2024.

In 2024 he’s awarded the ‘special prize’ in the “4th Ise-Shima International Composition Competition” (Japan) with his piece Amigdala for String Quartet.

In 2024 he’s awarded the ‘honourable mention’ in the “2nd musiCON International Composition Competition” by Mayflower Art Center and invited to the Final Concert in October at the National Opera Center in New York with his piece Amigdala for String quartet.

In 2024 he’s awarded the ‘honourable mention’ in the “43rd Premio Valentino Bucchi” by Accademia Filarmonica Romana with his piece Sei drappeggi dal mondo for solo classical guitar.

In 2024 he’s selected for participation in the 7th edition of the composition masterclass “San Vito Musica Contemporanea” followed by Ivan Fedele and is commissioned a piece for String Quintet for a concert in December at the Teatro Sociale Arrigoni in Pordenone (Italy).

In 2024 he’s awarded the first prize in the “3rd Aalborg Guitar composition competition” by Aalborg Guitar Festival in Denmark with his piece Sei drappeggi dal mondo for solo classical guitar which will be published by Bergmann Edition.

His music has been performed in Como, Milan, Baku, Bern, Yerevan, New York, Rome, Mallorca and Pordenone.