About Me

It is good wood. It was never, and never will be, perfect. It is up to you what you do with it.

Bio

Carlos C. Mauro Gálvez (b. 1998) is a Tempe/Cambridge-based composer, improviser, software developer, inventor, and educator originally from Lima, Peru. His creative practice spans concert music composition and performance, free improvisation, software development, and digital art.

A contemporary concert music composer working across composition, improvisation, and technology, Mauro strives to provide audiences and performers with profound physical and emotional experiences. As he describes, “I want people to experience mind-states they didn't know were conceivable.” His music draws inspiration from microtonality, spectralism, timbre-driven composition, free improvisation, Peruvian folk traditions, and philosophy. His works have been performed and recorded by leading ensembles and artists including Concept Store Quartet, SoundIcon Ensemble, PUBLIQuartet, SPLICE Ensemble, Lilith Hartunian, Barret Ham, Issei Herr, Sam Kelder, John McDonald, Aaron Larget-Caplan, among others.

Mauro has participated in esteemed festivals and residencies, including the Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music Bahlest Eeble Readings, the Chamber Music Conference and Composers Forum of the East, Etchings New Music Festival, Synthetis, and the Rivers School's Seminar on Contemporary Music for the Young. He has also received numerous awards and fellowships, including the Bill Maloof Award and recognition as a national finalist in the MTNA competition.

His research and creative work at the intersection of music, software development, digital notation, and accessibility technologies has been showcased at the International Conference for Music Notation and Representation (TENOR) in Zurich, supported by Tufts University's Music Department and the Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts organization.

Mauro began his musical training in Lima, Peru, where he studied with Abel García, Mauricio Nugent, José Kodama, Mirardo Mendoza, and Allin Machuca. He later studied composition with Gabriela Lena Frank, John McDonald, Andrew List, Alla Elana Cohen, and Yoon-Ji Lee, and has participated in masterclasses with Tania León, Julia Wolfe, Emily Koh, Trevor Weston, among others. He also studied classical guitar with Berta Rojas.

Carlos holds a Master of Arts in Music Composition from Tufts University and a Bachelor of Music in Theory and Composition from Berklee College of Music with a minor in contemporary conducting. He is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) in Music Composition at Arizona State University.

In addition to composition, Mauro maintains an active and exploratory practice as an improviser. He is a frequent collaborator within Boston's improvisation scene, performing on piano, cello, guitar, and quena (a traditional Andean flute). On a daily basis, he can be found composing, coding, performing, or hunting for the best (and reasonably priced) mango products at local stores.