Natasha Barrett (composer) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Natasha Barrett
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| Born | March 1972 Norwich, England
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| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | Composer and performer of electroacoustic music |
Natasha Barrett, born in March 1972 in Norwich, England, is a British composer. She creates a special kind of music called electroacoustic music. This music uses sounds from electronics and computers. She also makes acousmatic music, which means you hear the sounds without seeing what made them.
Besides concert music, Natasha composes for instruments and live electronics. She also creates sound installations for art shows. Her work includes music for dance, theater, and even soundscapes for exhibitions. Since 2000, she has explored how sound moves in space, creating 3-D sound experiences. Natasha now lives in Norway.
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Natasha's Musical Journey
Natasha Barrett started seriously composing electroacoustic music during her master's degree. She studied at the University of Birmingham in the UK. This helped her work with BEAST, a group that influenced her music. She then earned her doctoral degree in composition in 1998 from City University in London.
In 1998, she received a grant to work as a composer at NoTAM in Oslo, Norway. Today, she works as a freelance composer, sound artist, and researcher. She is based in Oslo.
Awards and Recognition
Natasha Barrett has won many awards for her amazing work. Some of her top awards include:
- The Nordic Council Music Prize in 2006. This is a very important award in Nordic countries.
- The Giga-Hertz Prize from Germany in 2008.
- First prize at Musica Nova in Prague, Czech Republic, in 2001.
- First prizes in 1998 and 2001 at the Bourges International Electroacoustic Music Competition in France.
She also received an honorary mention at Prix Ars Electronica in Linz, Austria, in 1998. In Norway, she won the Edvardprisen in 2004.
Other Work and Teaching
Natasha also gets asked by groups in Europe and America to create new music. Her music is available on many CDs.
Besides composing, she is a director and performer in a music group called EAU (Electric Audio Unit). This group focuses on spatial music, which means music that moves around you. She has also worked as a researcher at the University of Oslo, studying 3-D music. She taught sound design at the Oslo School of Architecture. She also worked as a professor of electroacoustic music. Currently, she is an associate professor of composition at the Norwegian State Academy for Music.
Selected Music Albums
Natasha Barrett has released many albums. Here are some of them:
- Toxic Colour (2025, UK)
- Reconfiguring the Landscape (2023, UK)
- Heterotopia (2022, UK)
- Leap Seconds (2021, UK)
- Puzzlewood (2017, Norway)
- Peat + Polymer (2014, Norway)
- Bouteilles de Klein (2010, Canada)
- DR.OX (2008, USA)
- Trade Winds (2007, Norway)
- Kraftfelt (2005, Norway)
- Isostasie (2002, Canada)
- Chillies & Shells (1998, UK)
- Rocks & Wraiths (1997, UK)
Her music also appears on many other CD collections.
Selected Compositions
Natasha Barrett has created a wide range of musical pieces. Many of her works explore how sound moves in space, using advanced 3-D sound technologies. Here are a few examples:
- Sagittarius A* (2017): For violin, live electronics, and 3-D sound.
- He Slowly Fell and Transformed into the Terrain (2016): An acousmatic piece using 3-D sound.
- Traversing a Small Town at Night (2016): Features flutes, live electronics, and 3-D sound.
- We are not alone (2015): An art installation with sound, light, and interactive electronics.
- Topology Chamber 2 (2015): An acousmatic piece with 3-D sound.
- Allure and Hoodwink (2014): For piano, violin, and electronic sounds.
- Flammepunkt (2014): An outdoor multi-media work with 5.1 surround sound.
- The Oslo Sound Space Transport system II (OSSTS II) (2014): An interactive sound art installation.
- A Collector’s Chest (2013): For a septet (seven musicians) with electronic sounds.
- Hidden Values (2012): An acousmatic piece using advanced 3-D sound.
- Animalcules (2010): An acousmatic piece with 5.1 surround sound.
- Kernel Expansion (2009): An acousmatic piece using hybrid 3-D sound.
- Deconstructing Dowland (2009): For guitar and live electronics.
- Sub Terra (2008): An acousmatic concert work and installation with 3-D sound.
- Crack Process (2006): For percussion, trumpet, electric guitar, and live electronics.
- Trade Winds (2006): A long acousmatic concert work with 3-D sound.
- Adsonora (2004): A permanent, public interactive sound installation.
- Symbiosis (2002): For cello and live electronics.
- Prince Prospero's Party (2002): An acousmatic piece with 5.1 surround sound.
- Push-me-Pull-me (2001): An interactive work for cello, violin, and live electronics, designed for schools.
- Industrial Revelations (2001): An acousmatic piece.
- Circadian Cycles (1999): For sinfonietta (a small orchestra) and live electronics.
- Liquid Crystal (1999): For clarinet and live electronics.
- Microclimate II: Red Snow (1998): An acousmatic piece.
- Buoyant Charm (1997): For ensemble and live electronics.
- Little Animals (1997): An acousmatic piece.
- Surf (1997): For two classical guitars and live electronics.
- Puzzle Wood (1994): An acousmatic piece.
