Jorge Amado
300 words bio
Jorge Amado (b.1997)
Jorge Amado is a Cuban-born composer, violinist, and violist whose music bridges Afro-Cuban traditions and contemporary classical language. Rooted in rhythm, lyricism, and cultural memory, his work spans chamber, orchestral, and stage music.
His compositions have been presented at Carnegie Hall, Chicago Symphony Center, Merkin Hall, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, and Wiener Konzerthaus, and at festivals including Ear Taxi, Virginia Arts Festival, Annapolis Chamber Music Festival, and Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival. He has been commissioned and performed by the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Catalyst Quartet, Alexandria Symphony Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra of Cuba, Cuban American Youth Orchestra, Niurka González, Jon Kimura Parker, and Desirée Ruhstrat, among others.
In Chicago, where he is based, Amado has become one of the most distinctive Latin American voices in contemporary music. His works have been featured at the Auditorium Theatre, Harris Theater, Constellation, and Guarneri Hall by ensembles including the Chicago Jazz Philharmonic, Fulcrum Point New Music Project, ~Nois Quartet, and artists affiliated with Dal Niente and Mycelium New Music.
He is a recipient of First Prizes at the 8SW, Harold Gramatges, and Nuestra América competitions and the Cubadisco Award for his album Ofrenda. In 2023, he was nominated for a Jeff Award for Measure for Measure at Chicago Shakespeare Theater with Orbert Davis. He was a 2025 Composer Fellow at the Imani Winds Festival at Juilliard, Second Prize winner at Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival, and in 2026 was selected as a winner of the Mycelium New Music Call for Scores and as a Composition Fellow of the National Orchestral Institute + Festival.
He holds an M.M. with Distinction from DePaul University and a B.A. Summa Cum Laude from the University of the Arts of Havana. He is a Teaching Artist with the Chicago Jazz Philharmonic and violin faculty at Merit School of Music.
September 2026 - jorgeamadomusic.com