Kate Milligan (b. 1996) is a Western Australian composer, designer, and musicologist currently based in the United Kingdom.

With a background in feminist musicology, Kate’s work critically examines the entanglement of social and natural phenomena. Fundamental to her practice is exploratory music notation, and the interrogation of audio-visual correlation through graphic, animated, and sculptural media. Her work is presented in a myriad of disciplinary contexts, from concert halls to galleries. 

She has been commissioned by electro-acoustic ensembles across Australia and the UK. Recent work includes a performance-installation for the London Symphony Orchestra Soundhub, and a spin-system instrument presented at the IRCAM Forum for spatial sound. 

Kate is a graduate of Information Experience Design at the Royal College of Art, London. This study was generously supported by the Schenberg Music Fellowship and the Ian Potter Cultural Trust. She also holds a MMus (musicology) and a BA(Hons) (composition) from The University of Western Australia. Her writing on gender and aesthetics is published in both popular and academic contexts, notably including Limelight and TEMPO: A Quarterly Review of New Music, Cambridge University Press.

Current projects include a new audio-visual work for renaissance flute, to be premiered in 2024 at the WA Museum Boola Bardip, supported by the Australia Council for the Arts, APRA Art Music Fund, and TURA New Music. A collaboration with Jonty Coy (historical flutes, NL), and Olivia Davies (videography, AU), this project combines historical performance methods with experimental practice. The work is written for a specific flute, found recently on a Dutch shipwreck dating from the 1530s.