Caroline Shaw facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Caroline Shaw
Shaw in 2020
Born	Caroline Adelaide Shaw (1982-08-01) August 1, 1982 (age 42) Greenville, North Carolina, U.S.
Occupation	Composer violinist singer
Notable work	List of compositions

Caroline Adelaide Shaw (born August 1, 1982) is an American musician. She is a talented composer (someone who writes music), a violin player, and a singer. She won the famous Pulitzer Prize for Music in 2013 for her special song Partita for 8 Voices. This song was sung without any instruments. Later, in 2022, she also won a Grammy Award for her piece called Narrow Sea.

Early Life and Music Beginnings

Caroline Shaw was born in Greenville, North Carolina, on August 1, 1982. She started playing the violin when she was only two years old! Her mother, who was also a violinist and singer, taught her using the Suzuki method. This method helps young children learn music.

When she was little, Caroline loved listening to music. She would call her local classical radio station. She asked them to play specific songs, like a duet from The Magic Flute. Then, she would get ready to record it on a cassette tape. If they played the wrong song, she would call back and tell them!

Caroline began writing her own music at age 10. She often tried to copy the style of famous composers like Mozart and Brahms. Later, she studied violin at Rice University and Yale University. She then went to Princeton University to study how to compose music.

A Prize-Winning Career

When Caroline was 30, she became the youngest person ever to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music. This is a very important award for composers. She won for her piece Partita for 8 Voices. The judges said it was a "highly polished and inventive" work. It used many different vocal sounds, like whispers, sighs, and wordless melodies.

The Partita for 8 Voices has four parts, like a dance. These parts are inspired by old Baroque dance styles. The group Roomful of Teeth, which Caroline is a part of, recorded the song.

Besides writing music, Caroline is also a performer. She plays the violin with a group called the American Contemporary Music Ensemble (ACME). She also sings with Roomful of Teeth. She has worked with many other musical groups too.

Her music has been performed by groups like So Percussion and the Brentano String Quartet. She was also a composer in residence in Vancouver, Canada.

Caroline has even worked with famous rapper Kanye West. In 2015, she helped produce a remix of his song "Say You Will." She also sang on some of his other songs, like "Wolves" and "Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 2." She even appeared as herself in the TV show Mozart in the Jungle. In the show, a character wanted to perform her music.

Caroline's Music

Caroline Shaw continues to create new music. In 2016, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra asked her to write a piece called The Baltimore Bomb. She also wrote the music for the 2018 movie Madeline's Madeline.

She has written a series of pieces called "Essays." These include First Essay, Nimrod, Second Essay, Echo, and Third Essay: Ruby. These pieces were performed in London at the BBC Proms.

In the early 2020s, Caroline started a new electronic pop duo called Ringdown with singer Danni Lee. She also wrote a special piece for a harpsichord (an old musical instrument) and strings. This piece was performed in Seattle in 2023.

Selected Discography

Albums

Featured artist

Guest appearances

Images for kids

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  A robot for kids.

See also

In Spanish: Caroline Shaw para niños