Mae Udarbe is an Australian composer, sound designer, songwriter and performer of Orchestral, Screen, Alternative and Folk music. Mae has recently completed a Bachelor of Music in Composition and Music Production at The Australian Institute of Music Melbourne and she works passionately on her art. Since moving from Malaysia at the age of fourteen she has established herself firstly as a songwriter and now as an up-and-coming composer based in Geelong, Victoria. Her early influences revolved around alternative folk music and particularly the world of musical theatre, where she has since performed both on stage and in the pit, culminating in an assistant musical director position in 2019. Mae was also a nominee for the ASSG Greg Bell Student Encouragement Award 2021, recognising excellence in Sound.

Her current sound is difficult to put one’s finger on, does the sound design element simply add another layer to her eclectic orchestral voice or does this element emerge from her experimentation through sound design? Fundamentally both are true, and for this reason she has begun to drift into the world of screen composition, stylistically drawn to this sphere while also enjoying the specific limitations and boundaries screen writing imposes on composers. Her method is largely in-the-box, using created sounds and blending sampled instruments with real performances, this style of production has won her many praises during her studies at AIM.

Mae hopes to continue to develop her craft beyond university, both in a composing and performing sense. She is currently studying the violin, and hopes to gain orchestral insight by playing with local orchestras. She has also performed and taught singing for many years now, but again is eager to continue her development through performance and learning. Ultimately, as well as succeeding in her respective fields of performance and composing, Mae would like to pass on her knowledge and skills through teaching, and has set-up her studio with the key goal of achieving that. Along with her specific instrumental studies, she offers lessons in music theory and production, catered to budding composers who wish to follow her lead of being self-sufficient in all facets of producing original music.