LORELEI ENSEMBLE INC

What LORELEI ENSEMBLE INC does

Lorelei Ensemble Inc is a 501(c)(3) non-profit vocal ensemble founded in Boston in 2007 by Beth Willer, the current Artistic Director. The organization commissions, performs, and records contemporary vocal music centered on women's and treble voices, with a catalog of more than 70 newly commissioned works from composers including Julia Wolfe, David Lang, Christopher Cerrone, George Benjamin, Kati Agócs, and Lisa Bielawa. Its core "product" is a touring repertory of curated programs (WILD, BREATHE, Look Up, Love Fail, Winter Solstice, Her Story) plus standalone commissioned compositions (Beaufort Scales and others), distributed through live performance, album releases on five classical labels (Cantaloupe, Cold Blue, New Focus, Sono Luminus, BMOP Sound, with a forthcoming NAXOS release), and educational residencies.

The business model is a hybrid of earned and contributed income typical of mid-sized U.S. performing-arts non-profits. Earned revenue includes performance and residency fees from flagship orchestral partners (Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, National, Nashville, and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestras), concert venues (Carnegie Hall, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Tanglewood, Symphony Hall), and higher-education institutions (Harvard, Yale, Duke, Cornell, Eastman), plus recording royalties. Contributed income includes National Endowment for the Arts grants ($35,000 in 2025; $25,000 in 2024), individual donations through the Artistic Director's Circle, and named-project philanthropy (Schlichtings, Yale Schwarzman Center, Susan Reardon, Drummys, Marcus) supporting specific commissions such as the WILD project. The ensemble operates with a lean administrative core of two staff (Artistic Director Beth Willer and Executive Director Sophie Press, appointed July 1, 2024) and a distributed roster of approximately 28 contract artists. Ticket pricing is venue-driven and not publicly disclosed; Lorelei itself operates on a performance-contract basis rather than direct ticket sales.

Name

LORELEI ENSEMBLE INC

Legal name

Lorelei Ensemble, Inc.

Website

https://loreleiensemble.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Lorelei Ensemble is a GRAMMY-nominated non-profit vocal ensemble founded in Boston in 2007 that commissions, performs, and records contemporary music for women's and treble voices, touring nationally with major symphony orchestras and conducting educational residencies at universities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Vocal Ensemble Performance

NAICS

Musical Groups and Artists (71113), Other Performing Arts Companies (711190)

akta.pro primary industry

Performing Arts Organizations (Theater, Dance, Opera, Music) (BPAGAHAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Group Music Classes & Ensembles (Band, Orchestra, Choir) (EDAMANAC), Music Producers & Production Teams (MPAIAHAB)

Keywords

• Vocal ensemble performance
• Contemporary classical music
• Music commissioning services
• Chamber music touring
• Music education residencies

Headquarters

HQ city

Cambridge

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Performance Fees: Fees from performances with symphony orchestras, at concert venues, and for educational residencies at universities
2. Commissions: Lorelei commissions new works from leading composers, creating a living repertoire for women's and treble voices
3. Grants and Awards: Funding from National Endowment for the Arts ($35,000 in 2025, $25,000 in 2024) and other institutional funders
4. Donations and Support: Individual donations through the Artistic Director's Circle and general supporter base

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Lorelei Ensemble is a GRAMMY-nominated vocal ensemble that commissions, performs, and records contemporary vocal music specializing in women's and treble voices. The organization delivers live performance programs through national touring collaborations with major symphony orchestras and concert venues, produces commissioned works from leading composers, releases studio recordings through partner labels, and conducts educational residencies at colleges and universities across the United States.

Product overview

Lorelei Ensemble Inc is a Grammy-nominated vocal ensemble founded in Boston in 2007 that creates and champions bold new music elevating women's voices. The organization operates as a performing ensemble rather than a technology company, offering live performance programs, commissioned works, and educational services. Their core offerings include touring programs (WILD, BREATHE, Look Up, Love Fail, Winter Solstice), commissioned compositions (Her Story, Beaufort Scales, and 70+ other works), recorded albums on multiple classical music labels, and educational residencies at universities nationwide. The ensemble collaborates with leading composers and orchestras and maintains a national touring schedule.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• WILD: A nonconformist and charged program featuring four world premieres commissioned by Lorelei, merging provocative prose of Virginia Woolf with poetry by Khadijah Queen and Mira Jacob, exploring technology in music and sounds of real and imagined beasts
• Breathe
• Look Up
• Love Fail
• Her Story
• Frost and Fire

Products and services

• WILD A nonconformist touring program featuring four world premieres commissioned by Lorelei, merging provocative prose of Virginia Woolf with poetry by Khadijah Queen and Mira Jacob, exploring technology in music and sounds of real and imagined beasts. Performed for symphony orchestras, concert venues, and university audiences.
• BREATHE A fully original experimental and cross-genre touring program co-composed by and performed with an all-star instrumental quartet (Charlotte Greve, Wendel Patrick, Ken Thomson, Jason Treuting), exploring breath as a foundational instrument and source of expression.
• Look Up A touring program featuring world premieres including Christopher Cerrone's Beaufort Scales and Elijah Daniel Smith's Suspended in Spin, commenting on worlds above and below.
• Love Fail David Lang's meditation on the timelessness of love, weaving medieval retellings of Tristan and Isolde with modern sources including words of Lydia Davis, Marie de France, and Richard Wagner.
• Winter Solstice A seasonal touring program performed around the winter solstice period.
• Recordings Album releases on Cantaloupe, Cold Blue, New Focus, Sono Luminus, and BMOP Sound labels documenting the ensemble's commissioned works and collaborations with living composers.
• Education Programs Residencies and educational outreach at children's choirs, high schools, and colleges including Eastman School of Music, Harvard, Yale, Duke, Cornell, and other institutions, cultivating individual and collaborative artistry in young musicians.
• Commissions Lorelei commissions new works from contemporary composers, having commissioned more than 70 new works that expand the repertoire for women's and treble voices.

Named customers9 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

19 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• Nashville Symphony OrchestraflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 September 2022Co-commissioned Julia Wolfe's Her Story with world premiere in September 2022. Forthcoming recording of Her Story with Nashville Symphony (NAXOS, 2025)
• Cantaloupe MusiccoreOthersRecording label partner that has released Lorelei Ensemble recordings, documenting and preserving the work of the ensemble and its collaborators
• Cold Blue MusiccoreOthersRecording label that released Christopher Cerrone's Beaufort Scales, which received a 2025 GRAMMY nomination
• New Focus RecordingscoreOthersRecording label partner with multiple releases including Jessica Meyer's I long and seek after (2024) and James Kallembach's Antigone (2022)
• Sono LuminuscoreOthersRecording label partner that released the Impermanence album
• BMOP SoundcoreOthersBoston Modern Orchestra Project's record label that has released Lorelei Ensemble recordings including Kati Agócs: The Debrecen Passion
• Boston Symphony OrchestraflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerMultiple collaborations including Julia Wolfe's Her Story at Tanglewood (Northeast Premiere), Thomas Adès programs, Holst's The Planets with Lorelei performing the wordless choral part, and Ligeti 100 celebration
• Chicago Symphony OrchestraflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerMidwest premiere of Julia Wolfe's Her Story with conductor Marin Alsop
• San Francisco SymphonyflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerWest Coast premiere of Julia Wolfe's Her Story
• National Symphony OrchestraflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerPerformances at the Kennedy Center including Her Story
• Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (May Festival)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPerformance of Julia Wolfe's Her Story at the Cincinnati May Festival
• Boston Modern Orchestra ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegular collaborations including performances and recordings such as Kati Agócs: The Debrecen Passion
• Tanglewood Music CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSummer music festival performances including Her Story with the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra
• A Far CryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBoston-based chamber orchestra with multiple collaborations including Shostakovich Symphony No. 14
• CantusminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMale vocal ensemble collaboration including 'Land that I love' program at Yale and joint performances
• Boston BalletcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on 'La Mer' production exploring ocean preservation with choreography by Nanine Linning
• David LangflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing collaboration including love fail, with multiple performances and a recording
• Julia WolfeflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerMultiple co-commissions including Her Story, performed with orchestras nationwide
• Christopher CerronecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommissioned Beaufort Scales, a 36-minute oratorio for eight voices and live electronics

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Roomful of Teeth: GRAMMY-winning vocal ensemble that commissions and performs new works across genres, with a comparable roster of rotating vocalists and a similar artistic-director-led operating model. Most directly comparable US vocal ensemble to Lorelei.
• Eighth Blackbird: GRAMMY-winning chamber ensemble that commissions and performs contemporary works. Comparable in commissioning-driven model and small flexible roster, though instrumental rather than vocal.
• Cantus: Nine-voice male professional vocal ensemble that tours nationally and commissions new works. Comparable in size, touring model, educational programming, and label-recording pipeline.
• The Crossing: Philadelphia-based professional chamber choir that commissions new works from leading contemporary composers and has won multiple GRAMMY Awards. Closely comparable in commissioning-heavy, label-recording, conductor-led model.
• Chanticleer: Twelve-voice male vocal ensemble renowned for touring and recorded catalog. Most established US vocal ensemble peer; shares the touring, recording, and educational residency structure.
• Anonymous 4: Female vocal quartet with a parallel commitment to both historical repertoire and contemporary commissions for women's voices. Direct peer in the women-vocal-ensemble commissioning space.
• A Far Cry: Boston-based self-conducted chamber orchestra and an existing Lorelei collaborator. Comparable in Boston headquarters, small artist roster, contemporary programming, and nonprofit operational model.
• Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP): Boston-based orchestra dedicated to contemporary music recording and performance, with the BMOP/Sound label that has released Lorelei recordings. Direct peer in commissioning and label-distribution model.
• Alarm Will Sound: Chamber ensemble committed to performing and commissioning new works across genres, with similar ensemble size and cross-genre programming comparable to Lorelei's BREATHE and WILD programs.

Broad incumbents

• Kronos Quartet: Long-established contemporary string quartet with the largest commissioning catalog in the field. Comparable in commissioning breadth and recording-distribution scale, but operates as a much larger institutional incumbent.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/236114589784469
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lorelei-ensemble-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about LORELEI ENSEMBLE INC