Oliver Kwapis (b. 1997) is a composer, performer, and teacher of electroacoustic and acoustic music. His creative practice is informed by questions of identity, memory, and embodiment. He often uses music to engage with his family history, personal and cultural memory, and his relationship with the natural world. Many of his works incorporate original and found texts, which he uses either as primary vehicles for meaning or as sonic material within more abstract compositions.
His electroacoustic music has been featured at conferences and festivals including the International Computer Music Conference (ICMC), Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the United States National Conference (SEAMUS), New Interfaces for Musical Expression (NIME), New York City Electroacoustic Music Festival (NYCEMF), MISE-EN FESTIVAL, and the National Student Electronic Music Event (NSEME). He has also created sound for installations held at the LaVerne Krause Gallery at the University of Oregon and the Grunwald Gallery of Art at Indiana University.
His acoustic music has been performed by a diverse range of ensembles and artists, including the National Children’s Chorus, Wet Ink Ensemble, Atlantic Brass Quintet, Jacobs School of Music Concert Orchestra, Oberlin Contemporary Music Ensemble, and pianist Eric Huebner. His work has also been presented at festivals including the Fresh Inc Festival, June in Buffalo, the Mostly Modern Festival Institute, and the soundSCAPE Composition and Performance Exchange. For his acoustic music, he was a winner of the 70th annual BMI Student Composer Awards and a finalist for the 2021 ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer Awards.
He is currently a Visiting Lecturer in Music in the Department of Composition (Electronic and Computer Music) at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. He holds a PhD in Data-driven Music Performance and Composition from the University of Oregon School of Music and Dance, where he studied with Jeffrey Stolet and served as a Graduate Employee in the Department of Music Technology. He also holds degrees from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.