Biography

Joni Greene is described as "a master of sonic color," drawing on her synesthesia, where sound appears as shifting hues and auras. Through a process she calls organized color, her music centers on vivid imagery shaped by a hierarchy of instrumental color. She has a particular interest in space, physics, and nature, and many of her pieces incorporate outside sources—including images from the James Webb Space Telescope and the Vera Rubin Observatory, as well as photography, science, and poetry—offering performers and audiences a window into her sensory perspective.

Her music has been performed throughout the world, including the United States, Canada, Europe, China, Japan, and Australia. Her diverse catalog includes works for band, choir, orchestra, chamber ensemble, and chamber opera. Notable awards include the 2nd and 3rd Frank Ticheli competitions, the ASCAP/Lotte Lehman "Damien Top" Prize, and the ACC Band Directors Association Emerging Artist Grant. Recordings of her works, Glow and The Moon Glistens, are available through Klavier Music Productions, featuring the University of Kansas Wind Ensemble with conductor Paul W. Popiel.

Ms. Greene is frequently commissioned by universities and school districts. She is currently working on a piece for concert band inspired by the findings of the Vera Rubin Observatory on dark matter, which will be premiered at Carnegie Hall this spring. She recently completed a collaboration with Professor Emeritus and librettist, Robert Hatten, on a libretto for her upcoming work The White Rose for Wind Ensemble and Soprano Voice, inspired by her ancestors Sophie and Hans Scholl. She continues to lead The Next Music Project with educator, Michael Kasper, which commissions works for young band from diverse perspectives. Exciting future works include an Alto Saxophone concerto for Otis Murphy, and a work for Solo Cello and Wind Ensemble for Hyerim Mapp.

Ms. Greene's music is widely performed at conferences and festivals including: the Midwest Clinic, Texas Bandmasters Association (TBA), American Bandmasters Association (ABA), College Band Directors National Association (CBDNA), Nebraska State Bandmasters Association (NSBA), the International Tuba Euphonium Conference, the World Association for Symphonic Bands and Ensembles conference in Taiwan (WASBE), the Las Americas en Concierto/Composers in New York, the Albert Roussel International Festival in France, Essentially Choral Reading Sessions, and the North American Saxophone Alliance (NASA) Conference. Additionally, her music can be heard by U.S. military bands, All-State bands, and honor bands.

Analyses of Ms. Greene's music for wind band may be found in the School Band and Orchestra (SBO) magazine and Manhattan Beach Times issues 5-7. Additionally, conductor Chad Simons has published a dissertation on the topic of Ms. Greene's life and music. Ms. Greene holds MM and BM degrees from Indiana University. Past and current mentors who inspire her music include Sven-David Sandstrom, Michael Colgrass, and Michael Gandolfi.

When she is not composing, Ms. Greene enjoys working in residence with all levels of concert band, orchestra, choir and chamber groups. She currently resides in Driftwood, Texas with her husband and two sons. She is also a proud marching band parent and baseball coach!