Bio

Eli Philip Hocking (b. 2005) is a composer, linguist-writer, and multi-instrumentalist from Chicago, Illinois—currently based in Bloomington, Indiana. Eli approaches art as both artifact&biofact, and his creations reflect a deep curiosity about the condition of life—an attempt to understand, document, & give shape to the diverse experiences of all living organisms. He works with uncommon rhythms&meters, various tuning systems, & inventive soundscapes as key aspects of his music. Drawn to the unvarnished sincerity of folk tradition, Eli has transcribed songs from places such as northern Japan & Central Africa. Drawing from his background in linguistics, Eli incorporates the rhythmic&melodic contours of world languages into his compositions, shaping a voice that is diverse & deeply alive.

Eli co-wrote a choral work with Courage Barda which was premiered in 2025 by NOTUS, Indiana University’s premiere contemporary vocal ensemble. He has also had pieces premiered by violist Addison Hightower, gayageum player Lee Yurim, & pianist Ding Zhou. Using his knowledge of the French language, Eli has set poems of Apollinaire & Lamartine for choir, and has given presentations of those works to the French department at IU.

Eli’s organ repertoire includes Messiaen’s Apparition de L’Église éternelle, Escaich’s Évocations I-IV, & has performed a full organ rendition of Stockhausen’s Plus-Minus No. 14. Eli has written numerous organ works, & has studied organ with Lois Leong, Hayden Glasgow-Ives, & Robert Nicholls.

Eli is currently pursuing a BM degree in Composition from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music with minors in French and Linguistics. He has studied composition with Don Freund, PQ Phan, & Younje Cho, & is currently studying with Gabriel Jenks.

Artistic Statement

As a composer also interested in linguistics&folklore, I am often looking at relations&partitions between culture, art, oral tradition, & historical context. I create based on notions that are concrete, but to build spaces that are abstract—that is to say, I am trying to form spaces where the listener is prompted to question the beliefs that have been presented to them as facts, &, consequently, to decide for themselves how they would like to be alive. My art operates on the fact that everything during&after its consumption is entirely arbitrary & up to the decision of the individual perceiver. I am merely&humbly the canvas-builder.

To achieve this, I am often observing the dance between intellect&intuition, & I am always looking for new ways in which these processes interact. I believe that these processes are in an upwards spiral of co-influence. This is a key aspect of my creative process: I am constantly exploring how I can harness each side of sentience&alive-ness through the lens of the other.

Recently, I have been working on a piece for live electronics, flutes, saxophones, & radio static called True Bugs, which uses characteristics of sound installation in a compositional setting in order to create a soundspace sympathizing the substrate-borne vibrations of treehoppers & other similar (non-human) insects. I am currently working on some field recordings of these sounds. The goal is to create a conversation between the familiar (animal-human) & unfamiliar (animal-non-human) in order to encourage thought about how we perceive&react to insects & their roles in our lives (put that bug in a jar & let him go!).