Joshua Penman's musical interests are wide ranging, but are primarily centered around mysticism, spirituality, and the possibilities of ambient soundscapes. He co-directs and performs as a tenor in the contemporary music project All Rivers at Once, which is dedicated to presenting spiritual music by contemporary composers. His primary teachers include Louis Andriessen, Betsy Jolas, Michael Daugherty, Bright Sheng, and Kathryn Alexander. He has won awards from ASCAP, BMI, NACUSA, the Salvatore Martirano Competition, and Yale University.

His work has been performed by the Nouvel Ensemble Moderne in Montreal, Het Pianoduo Post en Mulder in Amsterdam, the String Orchestra of New York City in New York, Gamelan Galak-tika in Boston and Connecticut, the PRISM Saxophone Quartet in New York and Philadelphia, ARRAYMUSIC in Toronto, and the American Composers Orchestra in New York, as well as at the Gaudeamus, Tanglewood, Bowdoin, and Music Academy of the West festivals. In addition to his Foundation for Universal Sacred Music commission, he has recently received a commission from the New York Youth Symphony, for a piece to be performed in Carnegie Hall. The recent Summit Records CD Untaming the Fury by Duo46 contains one of his pieces.

Joshua Penman holds a BA in music and mathematics from Yale University and an MM from the University of Michigan, where he is beginning the doctoral program.