Betsy Jolas is a French-born composer of American parentage, born in Paris in 1926, whose career began in the mid-20th century within the contemporary classical scene. Her music draws on post-war modernist techniques, including serial procedures, while retaining lyrical and colouristic sensibilities, and over her career she moved from more austere early works to a personal, timbre-focused language across orchestral, chamber and vocal repertoire while also being active in composition teaching and the post-war European contemporary-music milieu.
