Grammy nominated artist Missy Mazzoli has established herself as one of the top composers of her generation. In 2018 she made history when she became one of the two first women to be commissioned by the Metropolitan Opera. Missy lets David in on her tips for overcoming writer's block, shares the early hurdles she faced as a young artist, and compares the rush of performing versus the feelings she gets watching her work be performed by other musicians. She talks passionately about the importance of mentorship and how the industry needs to change its perception of composers, so that the field is more diverse.Check out Missy Mazzoli on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Apple Music, Spotify, YouTube, or the web.Follow Speaking Soundly on Instagram.Follow David on Instagram.You can find out more about Artful Narratives Media on Instagram and the web.The Speaking Soundly theme song is composed by Joseph Saba/Stewart Winter and used by permission of Videohelper.Speaking Soundly was co-created by David Krauss and Jessica Handelman. This interview has been edited and condensed to fit the time format.Episode copyright © 2023 Artful Narratives Media. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.