JOHANNY NAVARRO
COMPOSER
BIOGRAPHY
Johanny Navarro, a dynamic Puerto Rican composer, stands out as one of the most inventive artists of her generation. Her creative prowess has captivated prominent musical figures and institutions, including soloists Elisa Torres, Luis Miguel Rojas, and Andrea González Caballero, as well as esteemed organizations like the Multicultural Music Group, Inc. and the Boston Opera Collaborative. Her compositions have been presented by ensembles including The Catholic University of America Symphony Orchestra, the American Harp Society, Inc., the New World Symphony, America’s Orchestral Academy, the Victory Players, and Coralia from the University of Puerto Rico.
In a highly anticipated upcoming season, Navarro is set to create a children’s opera series for the Olga Iglesias Project and an SATB choral work for California State University, Bakersfield. In addition, Navarro is currently a resident artist with American Lyric Theater in New York, where she has premiered The Magic Cabbage with librettist Joshua Banbury and Working for the Macbeths with librettist Marcus Yi.
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Navarro has also made waves internationally, with performances in Cuba, Mexico, Spain, and France. In 2020, she was featured as a resident artist at the Massachusetts International Festival of Arts (MIFA), and her piece Celebration was included in the prestigious Casals Festival. Her opera ¿Y los Pasteles?, an Ópera Jíbara in two acts, garnered the Discovery Grant (2020) from Opera America, premiering in July 2022 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Additionally, in 2023, Navarro was honored as a Latino Leader by Nissan, as presented in Time Magazine.
Moreover, Navarro's Celebration (2016), a vibrant piece for piano trio, was selected by The Arts Club of Washington D.C. as a commemorative work for its centenary celebrations. Her choral and orchestral masterpiece Videntes Stellam (2016) made a its debut at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington D.C. and was broadcasted on EWTN. This colorful work marked her debut with the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of maestro Roselín Pabón at the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum. Her chamber opera Frenesí (2017) first premiered in Washington D.C., and by the following year, it graced the stage of the Bertita y Guillermo L. Martínez Theater at the Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music. In 2019, it found a new home in an opera al fresco setting at the Ballajá Barracks in Viejo San Juan, courtesy of The Opera Theater. This success led Navarro to the Puccini International Opera Composition Course in Lucca, Italy, where she received mentorship from renowned composer and director Giralomo Deraco. In 2021, her second chamber opera, Redención (2019), debuted at the Puccini Chamber Opera Festival in Italy.
Johanny Navarro rich catalog of works continues to grow, showcasing an undeniable variety and its deep roots in Caribbean musical aesthetics, especially Puerto Rican musical culture.
Current as of September 1, 2024
REPRESENTATIVES
Vice President | Classical & Creatives
CEO & Partner | Theatre, Film, TV & Literary