About

Kate Ragan received her DMA and MM in composition from Eastman School of Music. She received a BA in piano performance and political science from the University of Notre Dame, graduating summa cum laude. Her recent theatrical works Mea__________ty Ei___—C2 and for— simulate realistic emotional turmoil onstage. Plausible real-world situations invite audiences to disentangle illusion from reality. Interruption and unpredictability skepticize seemingly genuine interactions causing listeners to evaluate their ability to think rationally and clearly. Her compositions often normalize disjunct, irregular, and disruptive material as well as stark contrast in register, texture, dynamics, and articulation.

Also an active pianist, Kate strongly advocates for 20th and 21st century works, performing pieces by composers such as Olivier Messiaen, Galina Ustvolskaya, Tōru Takemitsu, Amy Williams, Tania León, and John Liberatore as well as premiering works by composers such as Marlies Hollevoet and Reilly Spitzfaden.

As a passionate teacher, Kate has taught courses and lessons in composition, theory, orchestration, and notation at Eastman School of Music, Syracuse University, and Nazareth University. Through a research collaboration with Eastman Performing Arts Medicine and Eastman Community Music School, Kate was piano instructor for adult students with Mild Cognitive Impairment and an accompanist for ENCORE, a choir dedicated to community members with an Alzheimer’s diagnosis. Her composition teachers include Ricardo Zohn-Muldoon, Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez, Robert Morris, Daniel Pesca, and John Liberatore. Her piano teachers include John Blacklow and Elinor Freer.

Recent commissions include works for 3D Percussion and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum’s Harmony and Dissonance: Orphism in Paris, 1910-1930, exhibit, November 8, 2024-March 9, 2025.