Biography

Cody McVey is a composer whose music exists at the intersection of playfulness and darkness, establishing a texturally and timbrally rich sonic reality that blossoms and warps over time. His compositions are often inspired by his childhood — by reexamining his past through a kaleidoscope of perspectives, McVey’s music moves forward with clarity and intention while still upholding a sense of whimsy. 

In April of 2025, McVey’s newest work A Scarlet Gap for mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra was premiered at the New World Center in Miami, Florida following a commission by longtime friend and collaborator, violinist Owen Ruff. The performance punctuated Miami Beach Pride Month, featuring queer and ally performers from the New World Symphony fellowship program and vocalist Lauren Richards. The piece sets the poem Aria by living poet Jenny Johnson and approaches each movement through a unique stylistic lens, highlighting Johnson’s accounts of Queer history, rebellion, tragedy, and joy. An earlier version of A Scarlet Gap shared first prize in the 2020 Virginia Carty DeLillo Composition Competition. 

McVey’s music has been commissioned, performed, and recorded by the Atlantic Brass Quintet, Sharan Leventhal, and Owen Ruff, among others. His works have been performed at world-class institutions like the New World Center in Miami, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and Spectrum NYC in Brooklyn. His pieces for orchestra have been selected for readings and performances with the Mostly Modern Festival Orchestra, Peabody Symphony Orchestra, Boston Youth Symphony’s Young Composer Initiative, and the Boston Conservatory Composers Orchestra. McVey is a recipient of the Ada Arens Morawetz Memorial Award in Composition and the Roger Sessions Memorial Composition Award. His miniature for solo viola Little Hope received second prize in the 2018 MA-ASTA Masters Composition Competition.

As an administrator and advocate for music education, McVey has served in various roles with the Peabody Preparatory, Boston Symphony Orchestra’s Education and Community Engagement Department, the Hopkins Symphony Orchestra, and the National Orchestral Institute + Festival to facilitate access to education for youth, communities, and aspiring artists.

McVey graduated in 2018 with a BM in Composition from The Boston Conservatory at Berklee where he studied with Felipe Lara, Eun Young Lee, Andy Vores, and Mischa Salkind-Pearl. He earned his MM in Composition from the Peabody Institute in 2020 studying with Du Yun. McVey currently resides in Washington, D.C. with his partner, Junior, and their cat, Charli.