"A master composer” with a “sophisticated sound world” (Classical Voice North America), Rene Orth writes music described as “always dramatic, reflective, rarely predictable, and often electronic” (Musical America). She recently completed a three-year tenure as Composer in Residence at Opera Philadelphia.

Upcoming premieres for the 2025-26 season consist of a solo cello piece for Sarah Rommel at Yellow Barn; a violin and bass clarinet piece for Yvonne Lam and Mingzhe Wang; a 12-minute song for soprano, viola, and piano that will tour with Curtis on Tour; and an 8-minute scene in Complications in Sue, commissioned for Opera Philadelphia’s 50th anniversary celebration.

In 2023, Opera Philadelphia presented the “triumphant world premiere” (The Wall Street Journal) of 10 Days in a Madhouse, co-commissioned by Opera Philadelphia and Tapestry Opera, which subsequently won the 2024 MCANA Best New Opera Award and was a finalist in the 2024 International Opera Awards for “Best World Premiere.”

Other distinctions include grants and awards from OPERA America, American Composers Forum, Kentucky Foundation for Women, and the National Association of Teachers of Singing.

Rene Orth is underwritten by the Allen R. and Judy Brick Freedman Venture Fund for New Opera