Aristea Mellos is an Australian composer and pianist whose compositional voice has been described as “unnerving and awe-inspiring” (Limelight Magazine 2020). A winner of ABC Classic’s 2014 Gallipoli Song Competition, Aristea is a recipient of grants from the Presser Foundation, the Earle Brown Foundation, the Australia Council for the Arts, Create NSW, the City of Sydney, and the American Australian Association.
As a composer who focuses on art songs and intimate chamber music, Aristea has worked closely with many notable international soloists including vocalists Jane Sheldon, Jessica O’Donoghue, Helen Zhibing Huang, Anna Dowsley, and Michael Lampard.
A represented artist of the Australian Music Centre, her music is regularly performed throughout the world in venues such as the Sydney Opera House, the Melbourne Recital Centre, the Megaron (Athens), Spectrum New Music, and Kilbourn Hall (NY). Aristea’s music is often broadcast by ABC Classic and has been recorded by Tall Poppies, NPR, Fine Music, and the Xenofone label. Recent commissions include works for The Song Company, the virtuoso pianists Bernadette Harvey and Stephanie McCallum, and the Music in the American Wild Ensemble.
A founding member and co-director of The Sydney Bach Society and The Ritsos Project, Aristea holds a Doctorate (DMA) and Master’s (MM) in Composition and Piano from the Eastman School of Music where she was the Paul Sacher Fellow. In 2010, she graduated with Honours Class I from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music (University of Sydney).