We were lucky to catch up with Macy Camille recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Macy, thanks for joining us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?
One of my recent projects that I wrote the music for, “Above the Water”, is a poetic physical theatre piece that explores the complex emotional landscape of grief along with the depths of love and loss. The show, which most recently played at The Den Theatre in Chicago, broke down the stages of grief and invited members of the community to share their poems and stories about grief.
This project (directed and devised by Chih-Jou Cheng) has been a collaboration since 2021. I really enjoyed the challenge of musically creating the stages of grief and exploring the sound (or lack of sound) for each stage.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
Growing up, I was obsessed with any activity that involved the arts, whether it was visual art, piano, guitar, band, choir, or theatre. I started taking music composition classes at 15 years old and realized that writing music was my passion above all else. My earliest composer influences included Danny Elfman, Carter Burwell, Stephen Sondheim, and Leonard Bernstein.
After I graduated high school, I went on to receive my bachelor of music degree in music composition. My undergrad education only solidified my love for writing film music and while I continue to compose concert works in which I strive to tell stories and portray personal ideas, I currently focus on collaborative mixed media works. I continued my education at Columbia College Chicago’s MFA program in music composition for the screen, where I continued to find my voice in writing.
I have always loved creating music using elements that are not always traditionally musical. Many of my compositions integrate both orchestral and digital elements.
I have had the opportunity to write for film, video games, live theatre, concerts, and music libraries. I have also had the privilege of having my music recorded by ensembles, such as Ensemble Concept/21, Prague Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Composer’s Orchestra, members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and members of the Abeline Philharmonic Orchestra.
Moving to Los Angeles was such an exciting step in my journey as a composer. I had the privilege of recording my thesis piece at Fox Studio with an orchestra of 70 musicians. I also had the opportunity to intern with one of my musical inspirations, Mac Quayle (Emmy-Award winning composer of American Horror Story, Mr. Robot, American Crime Story, Scream Queens, The Politician, Pose).
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
For me, the most fulfilling part of the creative process is collaboration. One of the main reasons I was so drawn to writing music for film, theatre, and video games was always the collaborative aspect. It is so exciting to be able to not only express myself musically, but to create something alongside people from a variety of fields as well (directors, editors, designers, actors, dancers, etc.). My favorite part of every project is being able to help other people realize their vision through my work. I love seeing the look on a director’s face when the musical score, one of the final puzzle pieces of the project, comes together.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
Being a woman in this industry is something that has always really driven me. When people think of composers, the first artists that usually come to mind for them are men. However, there are so many talented women composers who have inspired me so much in my career. For example, Hildur Guðnadóttir, Sofia Hultquist, Lolita Ritmanis, and Missy Mazzoli are all great composers I really look up to. One of my main goals is to follow in their footsteps as women composers become more common in our industry.
The Alliance for Women Film Composers and The Female Composer Safety League are also organizations that have encouraged me as a young woman in the field.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.macycamillemusic.com/
- Instagram: @macycamillemusic
- Other: https://soundcloud.com/user-660623922