About

Gillian Rae Perry is a composer and songwriter whose work is dedicated to themes of mental health, vulnerability, and interconnectedness. Her music has been described as “sweet and sensitive” (Parterre Box) as well as “gentle, introspective, caring, important, and beautiful” (Music City Review). She grew up on a bird farm in rural Texas, and her first compositions were written for the birds. 

With a background in both film and music, Perry actively integrates art forms outside of music into her artistic practice. Raised in the theater, she finds immense joy in collaborating with others and holds a deep love for the theatrical. Perry is the laureate of the Antinori Foundation Grand Prize at Atlanta Opera’s New Works Festival for her chamber opera The Sickness with librettist David Davila. The Sickness will be premiered by Atlanta Opera in June of 2028. Perry was the Vanguard Emerging Opera Composer with Chicago Opera Theater during the 2022-2024 seasons where she wrote The Weight of Light (libretto by Marcus Amaker) and she is an Opera America Discovery Grant Awardee for her opera Desert Bloom alongside librettist Mo Holmes. Perry was a fellow at the New Jersey Symphony’s Edward T. Cone Institute and the National Orchestral Institute + Festival. Perry released a singer-songwriter album titled gilly's garden in the spring of 2026 as an awardee of New Music USA’s Creator Fund. Her piece for choir, we could (be), won the 2026 HerVoice competition.

Perry’s work has been supported by organizations such as Opera America, New Music USA, The Toulmin Foundation, The Mellon Foundation, and the Central MN Arts Board. Her work has been presented by the New Jersey Symphony, Chicago Philharmonic, Chicago Opera Theater, Atlanta Opera, NOI+F, DesoDuo, MATA, BlackBox Ensemble, Aperture Duo, and the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, among others. 

Influenced heavily by the written word, she published her first collection of poetry, What Will I Wish for Now? (2024).  Perry holds degrees in film and music from Southern Methodist University and an MFA in music composition from the California Institute of the Arts. She is a DMA candidate at the Peabody Institute where she studies with Kevin Puts.