Carnegie Mellon University

School of Music

Where artistry and innovation share center stage

Alex Marthaler

Alex Marthaler

Class Instructor, Creative Expression

Address
5000 Forbes Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15213

Bio

Alex Marthaler is a composer, pianist, and educator based in Pittsburgh, PA. His compositions have been praised for their “color and translucency,” and are frequently inspired by physical spaces: both natural and man-made structures and phenomena. Compositions often combine harmonic and rhythmic elements from music around the world, a result of his study of tabla (an Indian classical drum) with renowned player Samir Chatterjee and his own performances of Eastern European folk music with the University of Pittsburgh Carpathian Ensemble. Recent premieres include his piece for wind ensemble Turning in Air, his orchestral piece Concrete Cathedrals, and incidental music for Sarah Ruhls’ play Eurydice.

In February 2017, he collaborated with choreographer Rubén Graciani on Tethers, Capsules, and Collisions, a dance piece that premiered at Point Park University. In addition to composing, he is a pianist for dance classes and private lessons at Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama and Point Park University and joined the Pittsburgh Youth Chorus as pianist in 2018. He also teaches at the CMU School of Music and is on faculty at the CMU Prep-School where he teaches group music classes to children that combine composition, improvisation, and storytelling. After completing his BA at West Chester University, Alex Marthaler studied with Nancy Galbraith at Carnegie Mellon University where he graduated in 2016 (MA).