Maria Eduarda Mendes Martins is a composer, conductor, and arts administrator living in Toronto, Canada. Her pieces explore experimental and abstract sounds (such as resonance, gradual changes of colour, extended instrumental techniques), while maintaining a deeply melodic and elementary character. By exploring medieval melodies through the instrumental languages of our time, Maria foregrounds the human connections existing between different times and cultures. Born and raised between two Brazilian capitals (Rio de Janeiro and Porto Alegre), Maria did not have access to musical education until her adolescence, when she discovered her ability to create medieval-sounding melodies. Since then, Maria completed a bachelor’s degree in music composition at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) with Celso Loureiro Chaves, a master’s degree in music composition at the University of Victoria with Dániel Biró and Christopher Butterfield (also receiving
orchestral conducting training with Ajtony Csaba), and she is currently pursuing a doctorate degree in music composition (DMA) at the University of Toronto, having Gary Kulesha as her supervisor. Her involvement with the local community and music production led Maria to stay in Canada, becoming a Permanent Resident of the country in June of 2019. Maria’s music has been recorded by Ablaze Records, Redshift Music, Musicworks (edition #129), and Urban Arts Berlin collective. Her works have been performed by the Brno Philharmonic Orchestra, Allegra Chamber Orchestra, Orkest de Ereprijs, Neue Vocalsolisten, Quatuor Bozzini, Luciane Cardassi, Mark McGregor (among others) in cities across North America, South America, and Europe.