Sofia Marita

Sofia was born in Australia in 1969 but was raised on a small farm in New Zealand and so spent her youth immersed in the harshness and beauty of the New Zealand landscape. Leaving New Zealand in her early 20’s after completing a degree in Agricultural Science, Sofia wandered through many professions, always finding herself returning to her love of music and creative expression. She finally began her BA (Music) degree at the University of Western Sydney in 1998. Throughout her degree, Sofia was awarded the Quota Club International Award for the most promising performer, the Laurie Brookes Memorial Award for the most outstanding performer, the Blue Mountains Conservatorium Piano Scholarship (twice), the Guitar Factory and Sound Devices Award for performance, the Marianne Rosenberg Musicology Prize and the Shane Simpson Composition Prize in her final year. In 2001 she completed her BA (Music) with First Class Honours and was awarded a University Medal for outstanding scholarship. Sofia was consequently awarded a Sydney University Scholarship along with a Social Sciences Scholarship to study a Master of Music in composition which she completed at Sydney University in 2005. Sofia is currently studying a Doctor of Creative Arts in composition with Dr. Bruce Crossman at the University of Western Sydney supported by an APA scholarship and a University Scholarship. Under the tuition of Dr. Crossman, Sofia feels that she has finally begun to develop her compositional voice. Strongly influenced by Eastern European composers, Sofia explores contextual issues related to the development of a cluster voice leavened with an East Asian ear for timbre, juxtaposing texture and line. She is particularly interested in developing a technical framework involving horizontal and vertical emotional intensity of sonic space associated with discord and consonance, and physicality and presence of space involving resonance and rhythm, in a searching for representation of ‘spirit’ embodied within existence. In 2009 she was awarded the UWS postgraduate APRA Music Composition Prize, for her solo piano work ‘Through It’. She has had works performed by David Miller, Zubin Kanga (Ensemble Offspring), The Song Company, Topology, and The Very Small Opera Company.

See all works by Sofia in our shop