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| Julia Thomsen |
London based neoclassical composer Julia Thomsen has achieved over 18 million Spotify streams and her music has been featured on flagship programming across Sky and Channel 4, though you rarely come across her music in the concert hall.
But talking to Julia, you get the clear impression that her music is more than this. She sees that there is such a lot going on in the world and feels that people need mental health breaks. Her music is relaxing and not too serious. She wants it to give people hope. The feedback she receives via messages on Instagram and elsewhere tell her what her music has done for people. And this is across the board - mental and physical health. And for busy parents, the music is something to switch off to, helping them sleep.
Julia is part of a generation whose work reaches audiences via streaming across the globe. Something that she finds amazing. Whilst Julia sees her music as having a sense of calm, people have their own reasons for listening to it. And it pops up a lot on people's Instagram Reels. This ability to tie in with visual images is perhaps also why her music is used in documentaries and television programmes. And when writing, she likes to cross genres, creating different types of music.
Initially, music was something she simply did for herself. She came from a large family, there was lots of noise, and she used to run to the piano, using playing as an escape. Having learned from the age of five she played classics alongside pieces of her own composition. Music took something of a backseat when she was bringing up her children. And it was a musical friend of one of her sons who became something of a mentor, helping Julia to achieve her musical goals.
She writes to express herself, but when working on collaborations she often tries to think outside the box as she wants to do something that her collaborators will like. Music comes from her, but can be different and challenging. She feels that it does not matter that her music is not in concert halls. Ever since she was younger, she has had nerves about performing in public, stage fright. And she describes herself as a bedroom composer, creating magic behind the scenes.
Being a woman composer she found could be a factor, particularly at the beginning of her career. Publishing was very male-dominated and quite hard to navigate, like a minefield, and you really needed to build relationships. For her, composition remains somewhat male-dominated and female composers need more recognition. That said, she loves the environment she has been in, with people encouraging each other.
She is dyslexic which is the reason why she did not have a conventional composing career. It was difficult to study in a structured way. Her trajectory has not been direct, with steps forward and steps back. But it has been a colourful and exciting journey.
When we spoke Julia had a new single due out, Happy Days. [on Spotify] She described this as simple and from the heart. A calm and nostalgic piece written on her piano, the final recording is simply what came out at the time. Further ahead, she is working with Natural Music in Canada, with Canadian-American ambient pop artist Holly Kenniff, and a Portuguese sound designer. They have already worked together before, releasing material, and will be working on a new EP.
At the end of April, Julia is contributing to a piece, Sweet Magnolia, to a compilation album.
Julia Thomsen:
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Elsewhere on this blog
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- Letter from Florida: Robert J Carreras experiences Peter Lieberson's 'vehicle through which to reflect a different face in love’s mirror' - concert review
- Seductive & expressive: in Time Stands Still, tenor Kieran White & lutenist Cédric Meyer refocus the sound world of Dowland & Danyel - cd review
- Not so much Verismo: Eleanor Burke's somewhat abstract staging of Leoncavallo's Pagliacci for English Touring Opera provides a fine setting for Ronald Samm's powerful performance as Canio - opera review
- Wonderful joy, energy, & sheer engagement: Gilbert & Sullivan's The Gondoliers from English Touring Opera, directed by Liam Steel - opera review
- He is not here: composer Oliver Tarney introduces his St Mark Passion with its highlighting of voices that we do not normally hear from - interview
- Handel's Rinaldo recast as pacey drama by Royal Academy of Music with some star quality in the solo roles - opera review
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