Robert Balaguer is a composer of opera, art music, and works primarily for piano and voice. He is interested in extending the line of works in the Bel Canto repertoire. His love of opera is foundational to his writing; literature, art, and storytelling guide his musical creation.

In 2021, Mr. Balaguer was invited to compose new music at Yellow Barn, an international center for chamber music, for resident artists The Vertex Duo; mezzo-soprano Kristin Gornstein and pianist Jeremy Chan. In 2018, he workshopped and recorded his opera Lycidas at Opera America in New York City. The piece, scored for five vocalists and chamber orchestra, was adapted from John Milton’s pastoral elegy of the same name. He is currently developing a new opera, The Faultless Painter, adapted a collection of poems by Robert Browning, based on the lives of three Renaissance artists.

A self taught composer, Balaguer is a first generation Cuban American who identifies as queer. He resided in New York City for 12 years before moving to Los Angeles in 2021.