MA Top 30 Professional: Peggy Monastra

Vice President
G. Schirmer/Associated Music Publishers

Nowadays, it seems that careers within a single company are few and far between. Peggy Monastra is an exception. Now the vice president of G. Schirmer/Associated Music Publishers, she’s been with the company for over three decades, having held a variety of positions including artistic director and director of promotion.

“I’m quite fortunate to work with a talented team of people who are there for the music first; as managers, editors, promoters, and advocates for the composers, and for their repertoire,” Monastra says. “The entire Schirmer team is passionate about that work and always has been. That’s what brought me into it, and that’s what’s kept me there.”

Having studied piano performance and ethnomusicology, Monastra knew early on that her passion for new music would “fuel her excitement about the field.” At Schirmer, she’s been able to nurture the careers of composers like John Corigliano, Tan Dun, Musical America Composer of the Year Gabriela Lena Frank, and Missy Mazzoli, among others.

Monastra also praised the company’s supportive approach towards her own career. For eight years, she stepped back to work part-time while she focused on raising her children and branching out into artistic consulting. “There are still a lot of companies that don’t support women executives in that way,” Monastra notes.

As a consultant, Monastra has advised a number of opera companies on new works and commissions, including Cincinnati Opera and Opera Philadelphia, among others; and she’s been a long-time board member of Alarm Will Sound.

These days, work at Schirmer keeps her busy, with project calendars stretching as far out as 2029 (opera typically has a minimum planning arc of three years). That forward-looking strategy might also contribute to the comparatively steady nature of her field, “Publishing has survived all the changes in the industry,” Monastra says, noting that a big part of their work goes toward “protecting the rights of our creators. It’s really important.”