Christopher Theofanidis (born December 18, 1967, in Dallas, Texas"Theofanidis, Christopher, 1967-", Library of Congress Name Authority File.) is an American composer whose works have been performed by leading orchestras from around the world, including the London Symphony Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Moscow Soloists, the National, Atlanta, Baltimore, St. Louis, Detroit, and many others.Christopher Theofanidis. Press Kit. Biography, He participated in the Young American Composer-in-Residence Program with Barry Jekowsky"Young American Composer in Residence", barryjekowsky.com. Retrieved May 27, 2025. and the California Symphony from 1994 to 1996 and, more recently, served as Composer of the Year for the Pittsburgh Symphony during their 2006–2007 Season, for which he wrote a violin concerto for Sarah Chang.
Career Theofanidis holds degrees from Yale University, the Eastman School of Music, and the University of Houston, and has been the recipient of the International Masterprize (hosted at the Barbican Centre in London), the Rome Prize, a Guggenheim Fellowship, six ASCAP Gould Prizes, a Fulbright Fellowship to France, a Tanglewood Fellowship, and the American Academy of Arts and Letters' Charles Ives Fellowship. In 2007, he was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Classical Composition for his chorus and orchestra work, The Here and Now, based on the poetry of Rumi. His Bassoon Concerto was nominated in 2017.
Theofanidis composed the ballet Artemis, which was premiered on May 20, 2003, by the American Ballet Theatre with choreography by Lar Lubovitch."Artemis, Repertory Archive", abt.org. Retrieved May 26, 2025. He also wrote the orchestral work Muse for the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra (as part of their "New Brandenburg" series), which they premiered on December 1, 2007 at Carnegie Hall.Bernard Holland (December 10, 2007), "Something Schumann, Something Old and Also New", The New York Times. His opera Heart of a Soldier, concerning 9/11, was premiered on September 10, 2011, by the San Francisco Opera in a production designed by Francesca Zambello.Allan Lurch (January 2012), "San Francisco", Opera, pp. 70–71.Michael Milenski (September 2011), "Heart of a Soldier, San Francisco", Opera Today website. His opera/dramatic oratorio The Refuge, with a libretto by Leah Lax, was staged and premiered by the Houston Grand Opera on November 11, 2007.Ralph Blumenthal (November 12, 2007). "Not From Here: An Opera for Houston's Immigrants", The New York Times. He has a long-standing relationship with the Atlanta Symphony, and his Symphony No. 1 was premiered by that orchestra on April 2, 2009, and recorded.Kerry Brunson (August 2016). Mass classical: America, accessibility, and the Atlanta School of composers (thesis presented to the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music, California State University, Long Beach), pp. 67 (premiere date), 84 (recording). Copy at ProQuest. He has served as a delegate to the U.S.–Japan Foundation's Leadership Program and is a former faculty member of the Peabody Conservatory and the Juilliard School. Since 2008, he has been on the faculty at the Yale School of Music."Christopher Theofanidis", yale.edu. Retrieved May 26, 2025.
Awards 2017 Grammy nomination for Bassoon Concerto 2016 A.I. du Pont Composer's Award 2007 Grammy nomination for The Here and Now 2003 Masterprize for Rainbow Body 1999 Rome Prize 1996 Guggenheim Fellowship 1996 Barlow Prize Six ASCAP Morton Gould Prizes Fulbright Fellowship to France Tanglewood Fellowship Charles Ives Fellowship, by The American Academy of Arts and Letters Joseph H. Bearns Prize
Selected compositions
GenreDateTitleInstrumentationNotes Chamber music 1992 Raga for flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano and 2 percussion written for the Eastman Musica Nova Piano 1992 Statues for piano Chamber music 1994 Kaoru for 2 flutes written for Kaoru Hinata and Christopher Vaneman Concertante 1995 Concerto for alto saxophone and orchestra Orchestral 1995 This Dream, Strange and Moving for orchestra Chamber music 1995 Ariel Ascending for string quartet Orchestral 1996 Metaphysica for orchestra Orchestral 1996 As Dancing Is to Architecture for orchestra commissioned by the California Symphony Chamber music 1997 Visions and Miracles for string quartet Chamber music 1997 Flow, My Tears for violin, viola, or cello solo written for Carol Rodland in memory of Jacob Druckman Orchestral 1998 Flourishes for orchestra Vocal 1999 Song of Elos for soprano, string quartet and piano Chamber music 1999 O Vis Aeternitatis for string quartet and piano commissioned by the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival for Speculum Musicae Orchestral 2000 Rainbow Body for orchestra Concertante 1997–2002 Concerto for bassoon and chamber orchestra commissioned by the Absolute Ensemble for Martin Kuuskmann Opera 2001 The Cows of Apollo or The Invention of Music Orchestral 2002 Peace, Love, Light YOUMEONE for string orchestra Opera 2002 The Thirteen Clocks in 2 acts; libretto by Peter Webster based on the story by James Thurber Ballet 2003 Artemis Concertante 2002 Concerto for viola and chamber orchestra commissioned by the Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra for Kim Kashkashian; recording by Richard O’Neill with David Alan Miller conducting the Albany Symphony, winner of the 2021 Grammy Award for Best Classical Instrumental SoloPeter Libbey (March 14, 2021). "2021 Grammys Winners: The Full List", The New York Times. Band 2005 I Wander the World in a Dream of My Own Making for wind ensemble Choral 2005 The Here and Now for soloists, chorus, and orchestra commissioned by the Atlanta Symphony and Chorus Chamber music 2006 The World Is Aflame for violin and cello Concertante 2006 Concerto [No. 1] for piano and chamber orchestra commissioned by Pro Musica Columbus for Donald Berman Piano 2007 All Dreams Begin with the Horizon for piano commissioned by Meet the Composer for Tanya Bannister Choral 2007 The Refuge for soloists, chorus, orchestra, and several non-Western ensembles Orchestral 2007 Muse for strings and harpsichord commissioned by the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra Chamber music 2008, 2009 Fantasy for violin and piano chamber version of movement II of the Violin Concerto Concertante 2008 Concerto for violin and orchestra commissioned by the Pittsburgh Symphony for Sarah Chang Chamber music 2009 Summer Verses for violin and cello Orchestral 2009 Symphony No. 1 for orchestra commissioned by Robert Spano for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Concertante 2009 Concerto for cello and orchestra commissioned by and written for Nina KotovaDallas Symphony Orchestral 2010 Une Certaine joie de vivre for orchestra Opera 2011 Heart of a Soldier for San Francisco Opera Chamber music 2012 Allegory of the Cave for string quartet and piano Piano 2012 Birichino (Italian: prankster) for piano 7 minutes longcommissioned by the 2013 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition for the 12 semifinal round performers; released on March 15, 2013 Concertante 2013 Concerto for marimba and wind sinfonietta Chamber music 2013 Quasi una Fantasia for 2 clarinets and string quartet (or string orchestra) Orchestral 2013 The Wind and Petit Jean for orchestra Choral 2013 The Gift for tenor, chorus, and orchestra commissioned by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra Chamber music 2013 At the Still Point for piano quintet Chamber music 2014 Artemis for horn, string quintet, and keyboard Chamber music 2014 Five for string quartet Orchestral 2014 The Legend of the Northern Lights for narrator, child actor and orchestra (with film) Choral 2015 Creation/Creator for soloists, chorus, and orchestra commissioned by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Orchestral 2015 Dreamtime Ancestors for orchestra Orchestral 2015 Making Up for Lost Time for orchestra Orchestral 2015 A Thousand Cranes for string orchestra and harp Chamber music 2016 Airs and Dances for 2 oboes, English horn, 2 bassoons, and percussionist Choral 2016 Four Levertov Settings for chorus and solo violin words by Denise Levertov Orchestral 2016 Summer Music for orchestra Commissioned by the Williamsport Symphony for their 50th anniversary Chamber music 2017 The Conference of the Birds for string quartet Chamber music 2017 Four Dreams for string quartet commissioned by Apollo Chamber Players Orchestral 2017 The Game for orchestra Commissioned by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Chamber music 2017 Lakshmi and the Seed of Divine Desire for flute and piano Chamber music 2017 One Thing at a Time, 6 Etude Miniatures for flute solo Chamber music 2017 What Is the Word? for string quartet and electronics co-written with Mark Wingate; commissioned by the Apollo Chamber Players; words by Samuel Beckett Concertante 2018 Concerto No. 2 for piano and string orchestra, harp, percussion Chamber music 2019 Discipline and Transcendence for violin solo written for the Elmar Oliveira International Violin Competition 2020 Concertante 2019 Drum Circles for percussion quartet and orchestra Band 2019 Off the Clock for concert band Chamber music 2019 Quintet for clarinet and string quartet Orchestral 2020 On the Bridge of the Eternal for orchestra Written for the University of Colorado Boulder centennial
References
External links Christopher Theofanidis's Official Site Masterprize 2003 Interview by Tigran Arakelyan