odaline de la martinez
composer and conductor
Marshall Scholar, Class of 1972 (Royal Academy of Music)
“We aim to reach the most deprived and isolated communities, bringing people together through the creation and performance of original music.”
-odaline de la martinez
a new beat
Odaline de la Martinez was born in Jovellanos, Cuba, then came to the United States when she was eleven. Martinez is the artistic director of Lontano, a London-based contemporary music ensemble which she co-founded in 1976. Martinez was the first woman to conduct at the BBC Promenade Concerts (the Proms) in 1984. She has received numerous awards, including a Guggenheim Fellowship, was elected a Fellow of the Academy, and received the Villa Lobos Medal from the Brazilian Government. In 2017, Martinez received a Lifetime Achievement Award and in 2019 a Doctorate Honoris Causa from the University of Surrey, a Gold Badge from the Ivors Academy of Composers and Songwriters, and a LUKAS Lifetime Achievement Award for her accomplishments as a woman and a member of the Latin American Community. In 2020 Martinez was made Honorary Visiting Professor at the University of Surrey. Her first opera Sister Aimee: An American Legend (1984) was premiered at Tulane University in 1984, followed by two other productions at the Royal College of Music (1987) and in Marin County College, California (1995). Her second opera Imoinda (from her Slavery Opera Trilogy) (2005-2008), was commissioned by the Caribbean Women Writers’ Alliance (CWWA) with funds from the Heritage Lottery Fund, England.