ABOUT
“One of the most vital and original ensembles on the American music scene”
— The New York Times
WHO WE ARE
Alarm Will Sound is a GRAMMY®-winning 22-member band committed to innovative performances and recordings of today's music.
We've built our reputation on performing demanding music with energetic skill. The group itself includes many composer-performers, which allows for an unusual degree of insight into the creation and performance of new work.
"Equal parts exuberance, nonchalance, and virtuosity"
— Financial Times of London
THE SOUND
With classical skill and unlimited curiosity, Alarm Will Sound premieres the work of cutting-edge composers. And through initiatives like Alarm System and the Matt Marks Impact Fund, we collaborate with some of the most innovative creators who work beyond the conventions of classical music.
WORLD PREMIERES OF MUSIC BY
Steve Reich · Meredith Monk · Tyshawn Sorey · David Lang · John Adams · Mary Kouyoumdjian · John Luther Adams · Marcos Balter · Augusta Read Thomas
17
Players
20+
Recordings
25
Years
BEYOND BOUNDARIES
Alarm Will Sound collaborates with artists who work beyond the bounds of classical music.
Through initiatives like Alarm System and the Matt Marks Impact Fund, we've created cross-genre music with some of the most innovative artists working today.
Electronica
Eartheater · Jlin · King Britt · Rashad Becker
Multimedia
Mira Calix · Bakudi Scream · Damon Davis
Jazz
Dave Douglas · Medeski Martin & Wood
Film & Soundtrack
Brian Reitzell · JG Thirlwell · Valgeir Sigurðsson
"A triumph of ensemble playing"
— San Francisco Chronicle
ON RECORD
Alarm Will Sound may be heard on 20+ recordings that showcase our range and ambition.
Land of Winter
GRAMMY®-winning · NY Times Best of 2025
Modernists
Includes "Revolution 9" · NPR Songs We Love
For George Lewis | Autoshchediasms
NPR Top Ten Songs of 2021 · NY Times 25 Best Classical Tracks of 2021 · New Yorker Notable Recording 2021
Radio Rewrite
Premiere recording of Steve Reich
Acoustica
Aphex Twin reimagined
Our genre-bending Acoustica features live-performance arrangements of music by electronica guru Aphex Twin—a unique project tapping the diverse talents within the group, from the many composers who made arrangements of the original tracks, to the experimental approaches developed by the performers.
LANDMARK PERFORMANCES
Our performances reflect a boundary-pushing ethos—from overnight concerts to world premieres of major new works.
2024
What Belongs to You
World premiere of David T. Little's work based on Garth Greenwell's novel, featuring GRAMMY-winning tenor Karim Sulayman and directed by Mark Morris, at the Modlin Center for the Performing Arts.
Sun Dogs Tour
Groundbreaking collaborations with Arooj Aftab, Daniel Wohl, Devonté Hynes, and Rafiq Bhatia, blending music and film across four U.S. cities in partnership with Liquid Music.
2023
Paper Pianos
Mary Kouyoumdjian's Pulitzer-finalist multimedia exploration of refugee experiences at EMPAC—a work we co-commissioned.
2022
Ten Thousand Birds
An overnight performance of John Luther Adams' work at the Paris Philharmonie during Nuit Blanche—four cycles between 9 PM and 4 AM for thousands of audience members.
2016
The Hunger
World premiere of the staged version of Donnacha Dennehy's work at BAM Next Wave Festival, featuring Iarla O'Lionárd and Katherine Manley, with direction by Tom Creed. A co-production with Opera Theatre of St. Louis.
2013–14
Artists-in-Residence at The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Four large ensemble performances including site-specific productions in museum galleries: Twinned (with Dance Heginbotham) and I Was Here I Was I (by Kate Soper and Nigel Maister).
2011
1969 at Carnegie Hall
A multimedia event using music, images, text, and staging to tell the story of John Lennon, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Paul McCartney, Luciano Berio, Yoko Ono, and Leonard Bernstein striving for a new music amidst the turmoil of the late 1960s.
"...a swirling, heady meditation on the intersection of experimental and commercial spheres, and of social and aesthetic agendas."
— The New York Times on 1969
Resident Ensemble
MIZZOU INTERNATIONAL COMPOSERS FESTIVAL
Alarm Will Sound is the resident ensemble at the Mizzou International Composers Festival, held each July at the University of Missouri in Columbia.
The festival features eight world premieres by early-career composers. During the weeklong festival, these composers work closely with Alarm Will Sound and two established guest composers to perform and record their new work.
WHERE WE PERFORM
UNITED STATES
Carnegie Hall · Lincoln Center · Miller Theatre · Brooklyn Academy of Music · Bang on a Can · Disney Hall · Kimmel Center · Library of Congress · Annenberg Center · The Clarice · CAP UCLA · Caramoor · The Warhol Museum
INTERNATIONAL
Beijing Modern Festival · Holland Festival · Sacrum Profanum · Moscow's Art November · St. Petersburg's Pro Arte Festival · The Barbican · Paris Philharmonie
EDUCATION
The members of Alarm Will Sound are committed to the education of young performers and composers through residency performances and activities at leading institutions.
Princeton University · University of Michigan · University of Maryland · Shenandoah University · Community Music School of Webster University · Cleveland State University · University of Colorado at Boulder · University of Missouri · Eastman School of Music · Dickinson College · Duke University · Manhattan School of Music · Harvard University · New York University · Massachusetts Institute of Technology
JOIN THE SOUND
Experience Alarm Will Sound live, explore our recordings, or help support the future of contemporary music.