What Is Noise is an award-winning ensemble that has performed extensively throughout the United States since 2014, when the ensemble made its Carnegie Hall debut as part of their “American Stories” concert tour. This tour included performances in Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, and New York.

As a non-profit organization, What Is Noise seeks to build community through music by performing culturally relevant concerts that connect audiences with musicians and composers. The ensemble is renowned for championing the works of young composers and providing opportunities for emerging artists. They have collaborated with esteemed composers such as Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, Lansing McLoskey, David T. Little, Rob Smith, Daniel Whitworth, Roger Zare, Don Freund, Edward Knight, Tania Leon, Katherine Hoover, and Jennifer Higdon, among others. According to composer Don Freund, What Is Noise has “the kind of energy and ability to project ideas that really captivates an audience.”

The ensemble has recorded two albums for international commercial release: their debut album “Equivocal Duration” on Centaur Records in 2019, and their forthcoming sophomore album “Temporal Echoes,” expected in 2025. 

Currently, What Is Noise is the ensemble-in-residence at Furman University for 2023-2026. They were previously in residence at The Parish School in Texas from 2020-2021, featured artists-in-residence with the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County in Maryland for 2018-2019, guest artist-in-residence for the 2016 Young Composers Competition at Webster University in St. Louis, MO, and ensemble-in-residence at the 2015 Taneycomo Festival Orchestra in Branson, MO.

The ensemble has performed at a variety of prestigious venues, including Carnegie Hall, the Florida State University Biennial Festival of New Music, Berklee College of Music, Boston Arts Academy, Longy School of Music at Bard College, University of Houston, University of Akron, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of North Carolina at Asheville, George Mason University, University of Alabama in Huntsville, University of Missouri, and Hope College, among others.

Formed in 2013, the ensemble’s name is inspired by an idea expressed by Jacques Attali in his book "Noise: The Political Economy of Music," which suggests that music has lost some of its inherent social value as it has increasingly become a commodity. Attali emphasizes the intrinsic importance of the connection between composers and performers with their shared community. What Is Noise aims to build community through meaningful connections made with the music of our time in live performance and educational outreach.

 “Precise, expressive, and convincing”  -Joshua Mills, Composer                                       

“Demands your attention again and again” -Benjamin Sung, Violinist

Residencies and Guest Appearances:

  • Ensemble-in-residence at Furman University (2023-2026)

  • Ensemble-in-residence at The Parish School in Texas (2020-2021)

  • Artists-in-residence with Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County in Maryland (2018-2019)

  • Ensemble-in-residence at the 2015 Taneycomo Festival Orchestra in Branson, MO, and guest artist-in-residence for the 2016 Young Composers Competition at Webster University in St. Louis, MO.

  • Guest Ensemble for Florida State University 2015 Festival of New Music (Tallahassee, FL)                                                     

Performance Venues:

  • Carnegie Hall (New York, NY)

  • Berklee College of Music (Boston, MA)

  • Longy School of Music (Boston, MA)

  • University of Houston (Houston, TX)

  • University of Akron (Akron, OH)

  • George Mason University (Fairfax, VA)

  • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (Chapel Hill, NC)

  • University of North Carolina at Asheville (Asheville, NC)

  • University of Alabama in Huntsville (Huntsville, AL)

  • Furman University (Greenville, SC)

  • Florida State University (Tallahassee, FL)

  • Hope College (Holland, MI)

  • Kalamazoo College (Kalamazoo, MI)

  • University of Missouri (Columbia, MO)

  • Webster University (St. Louis, MO)    

Praise:

“A tremendous ensemble sense and the kind of energy and ability to project ideas that really captivates an audience. I'm delighted to have you play my music.”

                        ~Don Freund, Professor of Music Composition at Indiana University

“Engaging and compelling - the litmus test for any ensemble is whether you want to

hear them again, and What is Noise demands your attention again and again.”

~Dr. Benjamin Sung, Associate Professor of Violin at Florida State University 

 

“Excellent performers and dedicated promoters of contemporary music. Indeed, the ensemble includes some of the most ambitious and entrepreneurial young musicians I have worked with.”

~Dr. Clifton Callender, Associate Professor of Composition at Florida State University 

 

“The musicians of What is Noise are intelligent, thoughtful, and absolutely dedicated to new music, and all these come across in their performances—precise, expressive, and convincing. They are exactly the type of musicians and ensemble I want to hear playing my music.”

~Dr. Joshua William Mills, Composer 

 

“What is Noise is a powerful ensemble whose precision and confidence bring an astounding clarity to the challenging works they perform.”

~Dr. Brian Jarvis, Assistant Professor of Music Theory at University of Texas El Paso 

 

“What is Noise performed with both passion and intensity. Their technical skill and nuanced expression left me speechless.”

~Al Kovach, Composer 

 Residencies Programs:

  • Individual Performance Master Classes

  • Chamber Ensemble Master Classes

  • Rehearsal Techniques Workshop

  • Composer Master Classes

  • Composer Reading Sessions

  • In-House Competition for Student Composers

  • Side-by-side Performance Outreach

  • Panel Discussions

  • Pre- and Post-Concert Discussion

Educational and Community Outreach:

What Is Noise is committed to bringing communities together through the performance of new music. The ensemble offers a number of opportunities to work with student composers and performers in an interactive and encouraging atmosphere. What Is Noise provides reading sessions and performances for student composers and chamber music workshops and master classes for instrumentalists. The ensemble also offers engaging entrepreneurial workshops for young musicians and promotes healthy conversation about how music brings communities together.

Albums:

“Temporal Echoes” (Anticipated 2025)         

“Equivocal Duration” (Centaur Records, 2018)