An abstract painting featuring blue, orange, white, yellow, purple, and red colors with black musical staff lines and notes overlaid across the canvas.

Described as “contemporary, edgy, descriptive, and extremely soulful,” Sally Lamb McCune has become an important voice in American contemporary classical music.

Photo of Sally Lamb McCune with short, wavy blonde hair resting her chin on her hand, wearing a black top, against a black background.

News & Recent Works

  • Stella Maris, Stella Caeli, Sterna Paradisaea (2025)
    Cantata for Soprano & Tenor Soli, Treble Chorus and String Quintet received its premiere May 2, 2025 at Ithaca College. Rachel Schutz, soprano; Omar Najmi, tenor. Text by Yvonne Gray. Nicki Gwynn-Jones, photography. Ben Robinson, projections. Amy O’Brien, choreography.
    View Performance >

  • The Rorschach Etudes for Bassoon and Piano (2025)
    The five-movement work received its international premiere by Christin Schillinger and Andrea Merrill at the IDRS Conference in Indianapolis (June ‘25). Score available soon at Murphy Music Press.     Listen Here >

Explore & Listen

Sally’s music lives at the intersection of the poetic and the visceral—rooted in storytelling, shaped by collaboration, and driven by curiosity. Whether composing for the concert stage, theater, or interdisciplinary projects, she crafts works that invite connection and spark conversation. Inspired by language, landscape, and the nuances of human experience, her pieces often reflect a deep engagement with both place and people.

Reviews

  • "Sally Lamb McCune's music speaks with engaging clarity and directness."

    – American Academy of Arts and Letters

  • "Sally Lamb McCune is becoming one of America's leading composers of choral music. This arrangement combining 'Materna,' 'America the Beautiful' and 'Amazing Grace' is a tour de force for any outstanding choir and will certainly become the standard for any patriotic arrangements to follow."

    – Hal Leonard, Mark Foster Series

  • "It is a joy to include the fine music of Sally Lamb McCune in my choral series at Hal Leonard!"

    – Judith Clurman, conductor

  • "Sally's music is full of vibrancy and creativity. Her craft is extremely well-honed and her orchestration for the wind ensemble exploits the myriad of colors the medium offers. She hits the sweet spot of developing ideas to their logical conclusion but not past that point. Sally is a true artist."

    – Dr. Cynthia Johnston Turner
    Director of Bands, University of Georgia

  • "With a driving, Appalachian-style folk melody, wide ranges that show off the mature treble voice, and a full range of dynamic contrasts, "Go Dig My Grave" is sure to be a show stopper."

    – Roger Dean Publishing Company

Close-up of a shiny French horn, showing its valves and tubing.
A close-up of a person's hand playing a Steinway & Sons grand piano, with the focus on the fingers pressing the keys.
A person playing a violin in a music studio or rehearsal space.

Follow Sally on

Black and white logo of SoundCloud with an abstract cloud and soundwave design.