Photo credit: Josy Gonzalo
Mathew Arrellín (pronounced: A-rre-yín), born in El Paso, Texas in 1993, is a composer and cellist currently based in Chicago.
He has written solo, chamber works, and orchestral, which have been performed by Ensemble Dal Niente, the Mivos Quartet, Third Coast Percussion, Chicago Composers Orchestra, ~Nois, the Low Frequency Trio, the Fonema Consort, New Music New Mexico, Ben Roidl-Ward, and himself, among others. His music has been performed in festivals such as the Valencia International Performance Academy (VIPA, 2016), June in Buffalo (2018), and the SCI National Conference (2019).
He is the recipient of numerous awards and grants, including a 2023 General Commission from the Barlow Endowment for Musical Composition, two William T. Faricy awards for excellence in composition from Northwestern, and an Illinois Arts Council grant, among others.
As an educator, Mathew teaches composition in the Sound Painters Studio, his online masterclass program, and he has also taught courses at Northwestern University, including first year aural skills and music theory, class composition for majors and non-majors, and an interdisciplinary course in music and the visual arts. Currently, he is a lecturer in Music Theory at Northwestern.
Mathew holds a bachelor’s degree in music theory, composition, and cello performance from the University of New Mexico, where his cello teacher was David Schepps and his composition teacher was José-Luis Hurtado. He received his PhD in Music Composition and Technology at Northwestern University in 2022, where he studied with Jay Alan Yim, Alex Mincek, and Hans Thomalla.
In the Sound Painters Studio, where he mentors composers (all levels) in a virtual masterclass setting, composers receive:
Two weekly composition group masterclasses live on Zoom
Personalized, highly-detailed feedback on your music
After 3 months of membership, you unlock recording opportunities of solo or small chamber works with world-class musicians to grow your portfolio
Mathew’s top priority is member growth through detailed feedback, the support of a community, and sharing relevant historical or theoretical knowledge that can be applied in practical ways. If you’re a composer that’s serious about taking your music to the next level, book a FREE call today to see if the Sound Painters Studio is right for you!