Called “stark, haunting elegance” with “intimate focus” by The Washington Post and “ethereal” by The Wire, Colombian-born composer James Díaz creates music that blends digital techniques, instrumental writing, and collaborative exploration. His work spans multimedia compositions, amplified solo works, orchestral pieces, and electroacoustic music, with a focus on distinctive sonic textures, resonant sound masses, and psychedelic immersive environments.

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Orchestral writing is a significant part of Díaz’s compositional practice, often extending his exploration of electronic processes into acoustic and amplified contexts. In B-sides, an acoustic realization of an electronic transformation of Millie Regrets' theme, Díaz brings electronic processes into the orchestral medium. A similar approach shapes and does the Moon also fall?, in which electronic processes inform the transformation and perception of orchestral sound. The piece was premiered by the New York Philharmonic and the Juilliard MAP Orchestra at Lincoln Center in 2023. B-sides was recorded by La Nueva Filarmonía, conducted by Ricardo Jaramillo, for the album Aire, Aire... No Puedo Respirar, which was nominated for the 2024 Latin Grammy Award for Best Classical Album. In 2019, Díaz became the first composer-in-residence of the Orquesta Filarmónica de Medellín, where he premiered RETRO, his largest work for orchestra and electronics. His orchestral music has also been performed by the Basel Sinfonietta, WDR Sinfonieorchester, American Composers Orchestra, and other leading ensembles.

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Recording is an important extension of Díaz’s exploration of timbre, texture, and acoustic sound. His debut album, [speaking in a foreign language], released by New Focus Recordings in 2024 in collaboration with violinist Julia Jung Un Suh, explored textural writing and sound processing, transforming the violin into an “electronic” medium. His second studio album, Espacio absoluto, is a collection of nine works for solo cello, performed by longtime collaborator John Popham, that explores dramatic timbral contrasts, hypnotic repetition, and multidimensional textures inspired by the concept of absolute space. Released by New Focus Recordings, the album continues Díaz’s exploration of acoustic sound as an immersive sonic environment. He is also developing commissions for the American Composers Orchestra and The Grossman Ensemble.

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Díaz has received numerous national and international awards, residencies, and commissions. He was awarded the 2025 Copland House Residency Award and named a 2026 National Arts Club Fellow. He was also Composer-in-Residence at the 35th Ussachevsky Memorial Festival of Electroacoustic Music at Pomona College. His distinctions include the 2015 National Prize of Music in Composition, the 2018 Bogotá Philharmonic Prize in Composition, and National Sawdust’s 2020 Digital Discovery Festival New Works Commission. His music has been presented at festivals including Time: Spans, ACHT BRÜCKEN, SinusTon, and Culturescapes.

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Díaz has degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, the Manhattan School of Music, and the Universidad Nacional de Colombia. He has taught at the University of Pennsylvania and Vassar College and has given talks and guest lectures at universities throughout the United States and Colombia. Musical America Worldwide named Díaz New Artist of the Month in 2023. His music is exclusively published by Project Schott New York (PSNY), and he is based in New York City.