Maya Verlaak is a Belgian composer (Ghent, 1990) who is also active as a performer, curator, guest speaker, researcher, and teacher. She teaches composition at the Conservatoire of Amsterdam (NL).
Verlaak’s works have been commissioned and performed by diverse ensembles and musicians such as the New European Ensemble (NL), Ensemble Klang (NL), London Sinfonietta (UK), Acid Police Noise Ensemble (NL), ACM ensemble (UK), An Assembly (UK), Slagwerkgroep Den Haag (NL), IEMA, Ensemble Modern (DE), Divertimento Ensemble (IT), and Birmingham Conservatoire Symphony Orchestra (UK) among others.
Her compositions often focus on how she can analyse a given context (such as place, musician, instrument, etiquette, conventions, history) as a way to creating and structuring material for a new work. In doing so, distance is an important attitude to make room for reflection, critical analysis and humor.
The results of such a working method can vary enormously: conventionally written orchestral pieces, ensemble compositions in which insight into the composition and communication between the musicians is central, performances in which the audience is central and are asked to reflect, self-built instruments and installations with computer programmed or analog electronics.
Maya is currently also curating “Post-Paradise” in collaboration with Richard Stenton and Zachaeus Dawson, a monthly concert series for New Music in Birmingham, UK. Programming local composers and guests from around the UK and abroad.
