Claire Cowan is a trailblazing composer and multi-instrumentalist who transcends concert, film, television, theatre, and ballet. As a mentee of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra in her final year of high school, Claire went on to study composition at the University of Auckland, where she won the University’s Top Composition Scholar Award and the Auckland Philharmonia Young Composers Award. Her early successes laid the foundation for a remarkable career.

In 2019, Claire made history as the first female composer in Aotearoa New Zealand to score a full-length ballet with her adaptation of Hansel and Gretel for the Royal New Zealand Ballet. A recipient of the APRA Silver Scroll, she was also named Best Classical Artist at the Aotearoa Music Awards. 

Claire's passion for collaboration and her imaginative orchestrations have led her to work with some of New Zealand's most prominent pop artists, including Benee, Marlon Williams, Brooke Fraser, The Phoenix Foundation, and Julia Dean – transforming their music into fully orchestrated pieces performed by Aotearoa New Zealand's leading orchestras. As a performer, Claire excels in strings and keys, often infusing her classical compositions with percussive and folk elements. She directs the Blackbird Ensemble, a chamber orchestra that brings classical music to unconventional spaces with visually engaging performances, making it accessible to diverse audiences.

Claire enhances narratives through music, making storytelling central to her compositions. She is passionate about connecting with audiences while advocating for underrepresented voices, particularly female and queer narratives, in classical music, ballet, and film. Internationally recognised, Claire was the grand prize winner of the Oticon Faculty International Film Music Contest, becoming the only woman in the Top 10, and has been awarded the PAANZ FAME Mid-Career Award. 

Panel statement: “A formidable mid career composer, Claire’s creative imagination and flair shine through every project she takes on, whether for stage or screen. An energetic collaborator, she has produced a slew of prime-time TV soundtracks, won multiple national awards, several composer residencies, and had two full length ballets commissioned from the Royal New Zealand Ballet.” 

Thank you to Corner Store for helping us tell these stories of impact, and to these contributors to the video: Auckland Live, the NZSO, the RNZB, music writer and broadcaster Elizabeth Kerr, and SOUNZ.