Bio

Claire Cowan is hailed as one of New Zealand’s most exciting composers with an impressive array of scoring and composition credits spanning concert, film, television and theatre. Seven prime-time TV soundtracks, multiple "Best Original Score" national awards, several Composer Residencies, and two full length ballets commissioned from the Royal New Zealand Ballet are just a few of the many accolades to her name. In 2021 Claire was awarded “Best Classical Artist” at the Aotearoa Music Awards.

Her passion for collaboration, and her versatility as an orchestrator, has led her to work with the cream of the crop in NZ's pop-music scene; names like Benee, Marlon Williams, Leisure, Tami Neilson and Dave Dobbyn are but a handful of the talents she has joined forces with, reinventing their songs with fully orchestrated versions for New Zealand's most prestigious orchestras.

Notable recent projects include Cinderella for the Royal New Zealand Ballet, music for Under the Vines and One Lane Bridge TV series, Possum Magic for the Australian Ballet School, and eight short chamber commissions from the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra to accompany iconic Kiwi storybooks. In 2019 Claire created Lo | Co Arts with choreographer Loughlan Prior, with whom she collaborates on a regular basis.

As a performer, Cowan’s expertise lies in strings and keys, often incorporating percussive and folk techniques into her classical string scores. She directs the Blackbird Ensemble a vagabond chamber orchestra who create highly visual and theatrical musical experiences in non-traditional spaces.

In 2023 Claire was the grand prize winner of the Oticon Faculty International Film Music Contest, and the only woman in the Top 10. She is now represented by the Oticon Talent Agency of Europe, representing New Zealand on the international roster of composer talent.

Awards & Nominations

• Grand Prize Winner Oticon Faculty International Film Music Contest 2023

• Aotearoa Music Awards Winner “Best Classical Artist” 2021

• NZTV Award “Best original score” for Runaway Millionaires

• Chapman Tripp ‘Best original score’ nomination for ‘The Keepers’

• Apra Silver Scroll for “Hillary” TV series

• 2 x Apra Silver Scroll nominations for ‘One Lane Bridge’ series 1 & 2

• TVNZ ‘best original score’ nomination for ‘Hillary’ TV series

• Auckland University Cultural Blue Award

• Auckland University Top Composition Scholar Award

• Auckland Philharmonia Young Composers Award

• NZ Symphony Orchestra Todd Young Composer Award

• Auckland Artist in Parks residency recipient

• APRA AMCOS Professional Development Award (Film and TV)

Film & TV Credits

IMDB profile

• The Memory Booth -dir. Steven Chow (short)

• The Off Season – dir. Michael Lonsdale (short)

• Whetu-Rere, The Sealion and the Comet – dir. Kat Baulu & Alistair Jamieson (short)

• Moonlight – dir. Tom Reilly (short)

• Moonfishing – dir. David Michael Friend (short animation)

• Assume Nothing – dir. Kirsty MacDonald (short)

• Waitangi, What Really Happened – dir. Peter Burger (telefeature)

• The Women’s Vote – dir. Peter Burger (telefeature)

• Billy – dir. Peter Burger (telefeature)

• Hillary (TV series) – dir. Danny Mulheron

• An Ordinary Person – dir. Susan Potter (feature doco)

• Shirley and the Hungary Bear – dir. Alan dickson (feature)

• Flipped – dir. Touch Compass Dance Company (short)

• The Luring – dir Alex Plumb (short)

• Sail Away – dir. Tama Jarman & Ella Becroft (short)

• Baby? -dir. Mark Prebble (short)

• Spirit’s Bay -dir. Joseph Michael Dark Cloud White Light

• Kiwi – dir. Thomas Robbins (telefeature)

• Golden Boy - dir. Alex Plumb (short)

• Runaway Millionaires -dir. Danny Mulheron (telefeature)

• One Lane Bridge Season One - (TV series)

• One Lane Bridge Season Two - (TV series)

• One Lane Bridge Season Three (TV series)

• Under The Vines Season One- (TV Series)

• Under The Vines Season Two (TV Series)

• Under The Vines Season Three (TV Series)

• Vivie dir. Hweiling Ow (short)

• Angelo dir Alex Plumb (short)

Film Orchestration credits

• My wedding and other secrets - composed by Andrew McDowall

• Ladies in Black - credits music composed by Tim Finn

• The Deadlands - composed by Don McGlashan

• The Deadlands TV Series -composed by Lachlan Anderson

• 6 Days - composed by Lachlan Anderson

• Spongebob Squarepants Movie: Sandy Cheeks -Composed by Moniker

Theatre soundtracks

• Royal New Zealand Ballet “Hansel and Gretel”

• Royal New Zealand Ballet “Cinderella”

• Australian Ballet School “Possum Magic”

• The Keepers – dir. Sally Stockwell

• Paper Sky – Red Leap Theatre

• Sea – Red Leap Theatre

• Red – Auckland Theatre Company

• Acquisitions – Touch Compass Dance

• Ego – dir. D.M. Friend HERE centre for the Arts, NY

• Dreams – Blackbird Ensemble

• Suture – dir. Alys Longley

• Leaning Tower of Penchant – Backlit productions

• There once was a woman - dir. Beth Kaye

• World of Wearable Arts 30th Anniversary show

Concert Music

• NZ Symphony Orchestra Made in NZ concert “My Alphabet of light” and “The trojan bird”

• Auckland Philharmonia War and Peace education concert “Drums of Mars”

• NZ Piano Trio “Subtle Dances” & “Ultraviolet” Chamber music NZ commissions

• NZ String Quartet “Celestia X Terraria”

• NZSO National Youth Orchestra “Trains of thinking”

• Christchurch Symphony  & Auckland Philharmonia  “Divas” and “The Adults”

• Dave Dobbyn Orchestral Arranger

• Modern Maori Quartet Orchestral Arranger

• Tami Neilson, Bailey Wiley, ALAE Orchestral arranger

• Tama Waipara Orchestral Arranger

• LEISURE & Auckland Philharmonia  Orchestral arranger

• Phoenix Foundation & NZ Symphony Orchestra -orchestral arranger

• Marlon Williams - Orchestral arranger/Musical Director

• Orchestra Wellington composer in residence commision “Stark –The Violin Concerto”

• BENEE & The NZSO Orchestral arranger/Musical Director

• Brooke Fraser & the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestral arranger

Teaching Positions

• Guest lecturer in documentary music, NFB, Quebec, Canada

• Guest Lecturer, Film music University of Auckland, NZ

• Guest Lecturer, Victoria School of Music Wellington, NZ

• Guest Judge, NZ Chamber Music Competition

get in touch

Email me directly or complete the form below:

clairesmusic at gmail. com

FILM & TV AGENT

George Christopoulos

christopoulosg@oticons.com

© Claire Cowan

FILM SCORES

A selection of

television, independent and RNZ documentaries

Claire and her work

NEWS

LIVE CONCERTS

Concert performances of musical works by Claire Cowan

Thanks to NZ on Air and SOUNZ, Centre for NZ Music.