Joshua Muetzel is a composer whose work is drawn to the commonalities in human experience, the fundamental and mystical qualities of nature, and the ways in which human beings and the natural world interact. He is interested in numbers and patterns in nature, climate change, interpersonal relationships, and personal introspection. He touches on these concepts through a narrative compositional style that reaches beyond categorizations of style or genre. His output runs the gamut from works for concert band and string orchestra to percussion ensembles and eclectic chamber groupings, including music for hardcover books and open instrumentation quartets. His music has been read, recorded, and performed by artists including arx duo, Calefax Reed Quintet, Ensemble for These Times, folx Percussion, NOW Ensemble, Sandbox Percussion, numerous university ensembles, and many classical soloists. His music has been recognized by The American Prize, The U.S. Naval Academy Band, the Black House Collective, and others.

 

Josh is the co-founder and artistic director of the South Florida New Music Collective, an organization dedicated to amplifying the voices of and providing opportunities for lesser-known, emerging composers from the South Florida area. The Collective will hold its inaugural concert in May 2026.

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A large amount of his creative output also includes works for steel bands and solo steel pan, his primary instrument. Josh has been a steel pan composer, performer, and educator for over a decade and is passionate about both (re)educating the general public about the history of the instrument and advocating for new music for the pan. His master's thesis, I'm With the Band: Cultural Education and Community Formation Within Steel Bands, investigated the seemingly inherent qualities of steel bands that promote community formation and growth. His steel band and steel pan music has been performed throughout the United States.

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Josh serves as the music conservator for the University of Miami and the Frost School of Music. He holds an M.M. in Composition from the Lamont School of Music at the University of Denver, and an M.A. in Performance Studies and a B.A. in Music from Texas A&M University. His principal instructors have been Sean Friar, Peter Lieuwen, Tom Miller (composition and steel pan), and David Wilborn. His music is published by Arboretum Press, Boxfish Music Publishing, and Pan Ramajay Productions.

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Josh is also a roller coaster enthusiast (coaster count 101), a cinephile, a coffee enthusiast, and an ordained minister for all your wedding ceremony needs.

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Full CV here (current February 2026): CV