Composer
Honorary fellow
Born in Barnton, Edinburgh, Musgrave was educated at Moreton Hall School, followed by the University of Edinburgh, and in Paris as a pupil of Nadia Boulanger. In 1970 she became Guest Professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara; a position which confirmed her increasing involvement with the musical life of the United States. From 1987 to 2002 she was Distinguished Professor at Queens College, City University of New York. She has written more than a dozen operas and other music theatre works, many taking a historical figure as their central character.