J. Taylor Arnold (b. 1990) is a New York City-based composer and bassoonist originally from Ogden, Utah. Arnold has “developed his own artistic voice within post-minimalism that  wades between lush chord arpeggios and lilting melodies.” according to Obscure Frequencies. Arnold was the 2019 winner of the NYU Steinhardt Composition Competition and was awarded the Composer in Residence for the NYU O1 Orchestra. His works have been selected for performance at the Bari Piano Festival in Italy, the Pulsing and Shaking Music Festival in NYC, and NEXT Ensemble’s New Year New Music concert. His last commission by NEXT Ensemble, You Are Not Machines, is broadcast on the radio throughout Utah. Arnold has had the opportunity to work closely with and premiere pieces with world-renowned artists like MIVOS Quartet, Quince Ensemble, Bearthoven, RIGHTEOUS Girls, and NEXT Ensemble. 

 

His latest commission, by frequent collaborator NEXT Ensemble, is an evening length work that will see its premiere in early 2021 in Ogden Utah, with a New York City premiere happening in the fall of 2021. The work will focus on the polygamous wives of Mormon Church founder, Joseph Smith. 

 

Arnold received a Master of Music in Music Theory and Composition from New York University in 2019, where he studied with Michael Gordon and Robert Honstein under the direction of Julia Wolfe. Arnold received his Bachelor of Music in Bassoon Performance from Weber State University where he studied with Thom Priest, Carey Campbell, and Shannon Roberts. Arnold is passionate about new music and growing its audience through outreach, education, and better marketing in the bigger “classical” world. In his spare time, when not working on music, he enjoys making fancy cocktails and going out to happy hour with friends for “New Music Talk.”