biography.

Paul Mekailian is an L.A.-based composer, pianist, and percussionist, as well as a full
time student of music at UCLA. Paul was born in San Diego, California, but spent the majority
of his childhood in the United Arab Emirates from the ages of five to twelve. This aspect of his
life played a significant role in the creation and style of his compositions. Upon his family’s
return to the United States, Paul began to find his own musical voice.

Throughout his early teenage years, Paul taught himself piano, and began composing
short melodies on his own. By his mid-teens, he began composing more elaborate pieces and
eventually shifted his interest from percussion to classical composition. In his teenage years, he
was the recipient of the National YoungArts Honorable Mention Award and Merit Winner in
Classical Composition, as well as the NextNotes American Composers Forum Honorable
Mention Award two years in a row.
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Paul is now entering his fourth year as a music composition major at UCLA. He has since
scored for multiple student films and video games and works part-time as an assistant to
TV/Film composer Chris Wirsig. He plans to pursue a career in film scoring.