
JL Marlor
composer | songwriter | performer
Saltwater Lung
This orchestral work explores the idea of an inverted climax—rejecting the traditional, patriarchal peak in favor of a deep, resonant descent. Inspired by the symbolism of the chalice, a vessel representing femininity and creation, the piece dives into the vast, storm-battered depths of the sea as both metaphor and memory. Raised on the hurricane-prone coast of Massachusetts, I connect the ocean’s beauty and violence to the raw, primal energy of creation and destruction. You’ll hear the siren’s song, the crash of waves, the splintering of ships—and, quite literally, the live breaking of wooden planks on stage. This is sound as presence, as resistance, as reclamation. Premiered by the Mannes Orchestra in 2025.
Delusional Bitch Juice
Developed through American Opera Project's Composers and The Voice program, text lifted from instagram screenshots and curated by singer, MiKayla McDonald. Peformed by MaKayla McDonald and Emma Luyendijk
Let Me Tell You Something About New York
Developed through American Opera Project's Composers and The Voice program, text by Melisa Tien. Performed by Natalie Trumm and Mila Henry
Slice of Heaven
Developed through American Opera Project's Composers and The Voice program, text by JL Marlor inspired by the actions and dangerous legacy of Dr. Walter Jackson Freeman, the inventor of the trans orbital lobotomy. Performed by Hans Tashjian and Mila Henry
And they spoke back her name
Conversations through a Door
Premiered and Commissioned by Chromic Duo and premiered at the Chicago Museum of Design in 2021
Premiered at New Music Gathering on May 18, 2018 at Boston Conservatory. Performed by Chelsea Feltman, Padraic Costello, and Timothy Leonard.