Michael Kaulkin is an award-winning composer and educator based in the San Francisco Bay Area. His vocal, chamber, and orchestral works have been performed across the U.S. and internationally. His music has been described as “exceptionally beautiful on all counts.”

Kaulkin’s String Quartet No. 1 (“City Walks”), a finalist for The American Prize in 2015, was recorded in July 2025 by Juventas New Music Ensemble for release on a Navona Records compilation in spring 2026. The work will also be featured on an album release concert presented by Juventas in Boston in May 2026.

Other recordings include the Yiddish folksong arrangement “Tumbalalayka,” featured on French vocal quartet Æsthesis’ 2022 album O Do Not Move, and American Standard for clarinet and piano, included on the Clarinet Classics (UK) release Time Pieces: 60 Years of American Music for Clarinet.

Kaulkin’s orchestral work Misterium Tremendum received the San Francisco Conservatory’s Highsmith Prize and was later performed by the Oakland Symphony. His theatrical work includes collaborations with regional theaters, and scenes from his proposed opera Lilith were featured in West Edge Opera’s 2022 SNAPSHOT showcase of new works.

Kaulkin serves on the Musicianship and Composition faculty of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s Pre-College Academy. An avid adopter and adapter of the Kodály method, he has also taught at summer Kodály programs at Holy Names University and Portland State University, and also teaches classes for adult learners through his initiative Turn On Your Ears.

A native of Washington, D.C., Kaulkin studied composition at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia and later at the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest with János Vajda and István Párkai. He earned his Master’s degree at the San Francisco Conservatory, studying with Conrad Susa. His music is available through Swirly Music, a platform for self-publishing composers that he founded in 2014.