Michael Abels

Michael Abels (born October 8, 1962) is an American composer best known for the opera Omar, co-written with Rhiannon Giddens, and his scores for the Jordan Peele films Get Out, Us and Nope. The hip-hop-influenced score for Us was short-listed for the Oscars and was even named “Score of the Decade” by TheWrap. Other recent media projects include the films Bad Education, Nightbooks, and Fake Famous, and the docuseries Allen v. Farrow. His most recent releases include Beauty, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and is now streaming on Netflix; Breaking (formerly 892), which premiered at Sundance; and his third collaboration with Jordan Peele, Nope.

Abels' works also include many concert works, such as At War With Ourselves for the Kronos Quartet, Isolation Variation for Hilary Hahn, and the opera Omar, co-composed with Grammy-winning singer/songwriter Rhiannon Giddens. Some of these pieces are available on Cedille Records, including Delights & Dances and Winged Creatures. Recent commissions include a work for the National Symphony Orchestraand a guitar concerto for Mak Grgić.

Abels is a co-founder of the Composers Diversity Collective. This advocacy group increases the visibility of composers of colour in film, gaming, and streaming media.

In 2023, the opera Omar, co-written by Abels and Rhiannon Giddens, won the Pulitzer Prize for Music.

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