She is known particularly for her arrangement of the finale of Giacomo Puccini's Turandot, in which she exclusively used the sketches Puccini left for it at his death. Maguire is also known for her dramatic contemporary opera in three acts, Hérésie, and has worked in a wide variety of musical expressions throughout some fifty orchestral, chamber, solo, vocal, choral and stage works.
Born in Chicago and raised in New Rochelle, New York, Janet Maguire began musical studies at the age of six: on piano, French horn, and cornet. She completed a BA degree in Piano at Colorado College, then went to Paris to study composition with René Leibowitz for five years. They co-authored the book Thinking for Orchestra: Practical Exercises in Orchestration (published by G. Schirmer), and a book about the orchestration of some of Jacques Offenbach's works, Nuits Parisiennes (RCA, Bote & Bock), as well as Carl Maria von Weber's opera Die Drei Pintos. Several summers spent at the Darmstadt Ferienkurse influenced Maguire's style, as did the music of György Ligeti, Luigi Nono, and Karlheinz Stockhausen.
Maguire continues to develop independent paths in musical thought with the help of several musicians specializing in experimental music.
Maguire was the recipient of the 2008 Guggenheim Fellowship as well as a residence at Copland House in 2006.
Maguire was music critic for the Paris Herald Tribune while she lived in Paris. After moving to Venice, she founded there the association "Musica in Divenire", of which she was elected President, and organized concerts of new music. Her compositions have been heard throughout Italy and Germany, and in France, Spain, Ireland, the UK, the US, Austria, Canada, Argentina, Australia, Latvia and Bulgaria. New World Records issued a CD with seven of her works, and Albany Records released a CD with ten of her works in 2009.
Shuffle (1991)La Mia Serra (poem by Luisa Milos) with mezzo-soprano solo and chorus (1992)Hark (1995)Glass (1997)Le Jardin de Versailles (1998)Fantasia with piano solo (1990)Etude Osmotique with chorus SATB (2000)Frills (2002)Ebb and Flow (1999)Fantasia (1990)Hark (2000)Treize A Table for piano and 12 percussionistsQuest for piano and 2 percussionsL'Intervista for piano, soprano, flute, oboe, clarinet, horn, trumpet, violin, viola, cello and percussionTragedy for piano with string quartetCanzone D'Amore for tenor and 20 stringsUn Momento for speaker, 2 violins, 2 violas, 2 cellos, 2 percussionistsWisp for soprano, 2 flutes, clarinet, bass clarinet, alto sax, horn, piano, violin, viola, cello, double bassFive Chinese Poems (poems by Joseph A. Precker) for bass voice, cello, clarinet, zheng, 3 percussionistsLace Knots for string quartet and sopranoL'Intervista for sopranoLa Mia Serra (poem by Luisa Milos) for orchestra, chorus, contraltoGone, (poem by Carl Sandburg) for mezzo-soprano, flute, viola, harpCosi (poem by Paola Bozzini) for sopranoCummings Lieder (poems by e.e. Cummings) for sopranoThree Love Songs (poems by Joseph A. Precker) for tenorSouthern Trees (poem by Lewis Allan) for 2 sopranos, mezzo-soprano, alto, with chimesIl Fiume Tchirek (poem by Altun the Tartar) for 2 sopranos, mezzo-soprano, alto, 2 tenors, 2 baritones and bassLightly for women's chorus with 2 sopranos, mezzo-soprano, alto, with tamburello, crotales, guiro, rainstickInno A Dio for SATB chorusPer Acqua (poem by Luisa Milos) for two SATB chorusesPiano and voice
Cosi (poem by Paola Bozzini) soprano and pianoCummings Lieder (poems by e.e. cummings) soprano and pianoThree Love Songs (poems by Joseph A. Precker) piano and tenorTreize A Table for 13 percussionists with pianoQuest for piano and 2 percussionistsFive Chinese Poems, for 3 percussionists, clarinet, cello, zheng, bass voiceMoondust, for zheng and 4 percussionistsWisp, for soprano, two flutes, clarinet, bass clarinet, soprano sax, horn, piano, violin, viola, cello, double bass, 2 percussionistsHier Bin Bin Ich, Wo Bist Du? for two flutes, oboe, 2 clarinets, bassoon, double bassoon, 2 horns, 2 trumpets, trombone, 2 violins, viola, cello, double bass, 4 percussionistsUn Momento, for two percussions, 2 violins, 2 viola, 2 cellos, speaker 5'L'Intervista, for soprano, flute, oboe, clarinet, horn, trumpet, violin, viola, cello, piano, percussionInvenzioneL'Altro Quartetto with crotales and bongoLace Knots with sopranoFumees d'Ivresse for four cellosVariations for violin and violaScontri for violin and double bassFingers for harp and percussionDiscussion for harp and oboeTango for solo violinSketch for solo violinVagheggiando for solo celloA Question for solo violaCanzone d'Amore for 20 strings with tenor voiceUn Momento for 2 violins, 2 violas, 2 cellos, 2 percussionists, speakerDanza for 4 violins, 4 violas, 4 cellos, double bass, oboe, clarinet2 Chinese poems, (Joseph A. Precker poems) for cello, clarinet, zheng, 3 percussionists, bass voiceHier bin Ich, Wo bist Du? (Konrad Lorenz gewidmet) for large ensembleA Trois - flute, clarinet, violinL'Intervista for soprano, violin, viola, cello, flute, oboe, clarinet, horn, timpani, xylophone, percussion, pianoMoondustfor Zheng and 4 percussionistsMiniotto - two clarinets in B♭Envoys, an opera-ballet based on a haiku-play by Richard FranceTaiga, ballet by Paola BozziniHeresie - opera in 3 acts, libretto by Gabrielle Zimmermann in FrenchScontri for violin and double bassInvenzione for string quartetMiniotto for 3 B♭ clarinetsDiscussion for oboe and harpFumees d'Ivresse for four cellosPeacock for mezzo-soprano, violin, viola, cello, flute, clarinet, saxophoneL'Altro Quartetto for string quartet with bongo and crotalesL'Intervista for soprano, flute, oboe, clarinet, horn, trumpet, violin, viola, cello, xylophone, percussion, pianoDanza for oboe, clarinet, four violins, four violas, four cellos, double bass, tamtamA Trois for flute, clarinet, violinSchizzi for film, two clarinets, bass clarinet, two bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, two trombones, timpani, percussion, harp and strings
