Composer and flutist from Salinas, CA, Monica Mendoza enjoys combining many eclectic elements into her works. She has recently studied flute with Dr. Nicole Riner and composition with Dr. Nicolas Chuaqui at the University of Wyoming, and had previously studied with Dr. Anne Guzzo. Currently, Monica is working on her PhD in Composition studies at the University of Utah, and has studied under Dr. Jessica Rudman and Dr. Elisabet Curbelo. Her musical compositions are often inspired by stories, and she enjoys exploring fantastical worlds through abstract sound, as well as writing about animal life or natural phenomena. In her professional career she has written commissioned music for both solo instrument and chamber groups, and was a composition fellow at the Wyoming Festival: New Music in the Mountains, 2023. In 2023 Monica was commissioned to write an orchestral piece for the Wyoming Symphony, which premiered in February of 2024, and is the 2024-26 winner of the Steve Roens Prize for composition at the University of Utah.

 An enthusiastic performer, Monica enjoys chamber music and pit orchestra. Monica likes to unwind with video games, drawing and reading.