350 words

Kennedy Taylor Dixon is a composer, violist, vocalist, and improviser whose work explores repetition, intimacy, and the physicality of sound. Her practice moves fluidly between composed and improvised music, often blurring the boundaries between acoustic performance, extended technique, voice, and electronic processing. As both a composer and performer, Dixon is interested in sound as a space for experimentation, vulnerability, and spontaneous discovery.

Dixon’s work has been presented in a variety of contexts, from new music festivals and concert halls to collaborations with dancers and improvisers. She made her Kennedy Center debut in 2024 as part of Sounds of Us: An Immersive New Music Festival, hosted by violinist Jennifer Koh. She has been commissioned by organizations such as Young Dancemakers Company, Castle of our Skins, Legacy Arts International, Tetractys New Music, Westminster University, and the Kalamazoo Area Music Teachers Association. She has also worked with contemporary ensembles including Alarm Will Sound, Attacca Quartet, JACK Quartet, ~Nois, SputterBox, and Ekmeles, and has participated in the Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival twice, first as a Performance Fellow and later as a Composition Fellow.

As a performer, Dixon made her Lincoln Center debut in June 2026, performing with Second Ending Ensemble in Alice Tully Hall on a program featuring a premiere by Princeton cohort-mate Bobby Ge. She is a founding member of and&also, a duo with violinist, composer, and friend Aliayta Foon-Dancoes focused on improvisation and collaboration. The duo has performed at Unruly Sounds in Princeton for three consecutive years. Prior to moving east, Dixon served as Assistant Principal Violist of the Holland Symphony Orchestra in southwest Michigan for four seasons.

Dixon is a Ph.D. candidate in Music Composition at Princeton University and a President’s Fellow, where she works closely with Professor Nathalie Joachim. She holds a MFA and MA in Music from Princeton and Western Michigan University, respectively, and a BM in Viola Performance and Music Composition from Western Michigan University, where she studied viola with Igor Fedotov and composition with Dr. Lisa R. Coons.

250 words

Kennedy Taylor Dixon is a composer, violist, vocalist, and improviser whose work explores repetition, intimacy, and the physicality of sound. Her practice moves fluidly between composition and improvisation, often blurring the boundaries between acoustic performance, extended technique, voice, and electronic processing. As both a composer and performer, Dixon is interested in sound as a space for experimentation, vulnerability, and spontaneous discovery.

Dixon made her Kennedy Center debut as a composer in 2024 as part of Sounds of Us: An Immersive New Music Festival, hosted by violinist Jennifer Koh. In 2026, she made her Lincoln Center debut as a violist with Second Ending Ensemble at Alice Tully Hall. Her work has been commissioned by Young Dancemakers Company, Castle of our Skins, Legacy Arts International, Tetractys New Music, Westminster University, and the Kalamazoo Area Music Teachers Association. She has collaborated with contemporary ensembles including Alarm Will Sound, Attacca Quartet, JACK Quartet, ~Nois, SputterBox, and Ekmeles, and has participated in the Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival as both a Performance Fellow and Composition Fellow.

Dixon is a founding member of and&also, an improvisation-focused duo with violinist and composer Aliayta Foon-Dancoes. The duo has performed at Unruly Sounds in Princeton for three consecutive years. Dixon is currently a Ph.D. candidate in Music Composition at Princeton University and a President’s Fellow, where she studies with Professor Nathalie Joachim. She holds an MFA in Music from Princeton University, an MA in Music from Western Michigan University, and a BM in Viola Performance and Music Composition from Western Michigan University.

100 words

Kennedy Taylor Dixon is a composer, violist, vocalist, and improviser whose work explores repetition, intimacy, and the physicality of sound. Her practice moves between composition and improvisation, incorporating extended techniques, voice, and electronics. Dixon made her Kennedy Center debut as a composer in 2024 as part of Sounds of Us, hosted by violinist Jennifer Koh, and her Lincoln Center debut as a violist in 2026 with Second Ending Ensemble at Alice Tully Hall. Her work has been commissioned by Young Dancemakers Company, Castle of our Skins, and other organizations, and she has collaborated with leading contemporary ensembles. Dixon is a Ph.D. candidate in Music Composition at Princeton University and a President’s Fellow.