Katia Makdissi-Warren studied composition in Quebec and in Hamburg, as well as Arabic and Syrian music in Beirut, with Ennio Morricone, Franco Donatoni, Manfred Stahnke, P Louis Hage and Michel Longtin. 

An innovative composer, she drew attention on the national and international scene by her unique style, where the music of the Middle-East, the West and Native America meet. Furthermore, in 2006 she founded the Oktoécho ensemble, specialized in cultural mixing, for which she regularly composes in addition to being the artistic director. Her aesthetic of fusion drove her to work regularly – at once as composer, ensemble director and performer – with the Native American, Arab and Jewish communities.

While staying deeply committed to diverse cultural communities, Katia Makdissi-Warrenis extremely active in the milieu of contemporary music, having received ensemble orders from the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, the Beirut National Oriental Orchestra, I Musici de Montréal, the McGill Chamber Orchestra and the Ensemble contemporain de Montréal (ECM+). Her works are regularly played by performers and chamber music ensembles beyond Canadian borders, in France, Germany, Lebanon, Morocco, Argentina and Spain.

She has written numerous soundtracks for the stage, dance, film, television and exhibitions in Canada, France, Singapore, Japan and the Arab Emirates – including that of the permanent exhibition of Burl-Khalifa of Dubaï, tallest skyscraper in the world.