Chason Goldschmitz

Composer, Arranger, Producer, Violist,
Arts Administrator

Executive Director of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Philharmonic

About

Chason Goldschmitz is a composer, arranger, producer, and the Executive Director of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Philharmonic. Previously, Goldschmitz served as Director of Production, Music, and Arts & Health for the office of soprano Renée Fleming. In that role, he produced concerts, summits, multimedia events, and community engagements. He also coordinated arts and health research, policy, and funding initiatives on behalf of the Renée Fleming Foundation.

Performers of arrangements by Goldschmitz include soprano Renée Fleming, pianist Inon Barnatan, conductors Marin Alsop and JoAnn Falletta, the Baltimore and Houston Symphonies, the Buffalo Philharmonic, and Ottawa’s National Arts Centre Orchestra. His original compositions have been commissioned by venues such as 92NY and performed by ensembles including the Juilliard Orchestra and the Daedalus String Quartet.

Goldschmitz holds Master’s degrees in Music Composition from the Juilliard School and Nonprofit Leadership and Management from Arizona State University, along with a Bachelor’s in Environmental Science from Columbia University.

Works

  • Echoes of a Marionette (8’30)
    Richly-divided string textures and quiet, intense motion gives way to powerful brass chorales
    3333 4331 timp+2 hp pno/cel strings
    Chamber orch. version available

    Ghosts of Iron, Memories of Stone (12’)
    A surround-sound reflection on nature, grief, and echoes of history, through the landscapes of Valley Forge National Historical Park
    2222 4131 timp+3 hp pno/cel strings
    Winner, Juilliard Orchestra Composer Competition

    So whisper the trees…(11')
    Concerto for Viola and Chamber Orchestra
    A three-movement rhapsody on flowing landscapes of the Pacific Northwest
    0110 1000 timp+1 - solo viola - strings

    Click here for full list of works.

  • Becoming Hawk
    Opera in 3 Acts (in progress)
    Libretto by Ronny Goldschmitz

    Lady in the Golden Cage
    Opera in 3 Acts (in progress)
    Libretto by Ronny Goldschmitz

    Remember (45’)
    Monodrama in 1 Act
    An elderly musician seeks to desperately retain the last threads of memory of his beloved, departed wife — and to desperately forget the trauma that haunts his now lonely life.
    Libretto by Ronny Goldschmitz
    Bass-Baritone, viola, piano

    Click here for full list of works.

  • String Quartet No. 1 "Elemental" (11')
    Four movements illustrating the elemental spirits with disparate string textures

    String Quartet No. 2 “Paschalis" (11')
    A single-movement memorial to a cherished musical mentor

    String Quartet No. 3 “Discomfort" (11')
    A deep, reflective exploration on dissonance and harmony, dipping into 29-tone equal temperament with exaggerated accidentals

    Click here for full list of works.

  • Brooklyn Crucifixion (6')
    A reflective portrait inspired by Klezmer modes & Chaim Potok’s My Name is Asher Lev
    Clarinet, string quartet, piano
    Commissioned by 92NY

    Discrete Automata (8')
    A playful whimsy of curious New York City vignettes
    Piccolo, bassoon, percussion, cello

    Kaleidoscopes: Blooming Crystalline (9')
    A winter’s triptych on life, love, and memory: crystallizing, blooming, and fading away
    Clarinet, viola, harp, piano 4-hand

    Click here for full list of works.

  • Blueprint of Spacetime (5')
    Luminous poetry, sowing light engraved on the blueprint of spacetime
    SATB a cappella
    English text: Ronny Goldschmitz; Hebrew text: Psalm 97:11

    Crois en nous (5’)
    “Believe in us”: on love’s vulnerability and resilience over life’s coldest hardships
    Baritone, cello quartet
    French text by the composer

    What Will Be Remembered (9’30)
    A microtonal, nature-woven surround-sound existential contemplation: What will be remembered of humanity, and of Planet Earth?
    Soprano, crotales, live electronics

    Click here for full list of works.

  • Crafts of Hephaestus (9')
    Five pieces exploring gaiety and grandeur of gems and geology
    Organ (solo) OR brass quintet OR brass sextet
    Commissioned by organist Ryan Kennedy

    Ménagerie Mosaïque (8')
    A challenging solo showpiece full of colorful creatures and wide-ranging techniques
    Violin OR mandolin (solo)
    Commissioned by violinist Dennis Kim

    Rhapsody for a Forgotten Soul (12')
    A rhapsody-etude, a deep lament through rich viola textures and dyads
    Viola (solo)

    Click here for full list of works.

  • An Chúilfhionn (The Coolin) (Trad., arr. Esposito)
    Orchestrated for solo violin & string orchestra
    For the Northeastern Pennsylvania Philharmonic

    “L’heure exquise”, from Chansons grises (R. Hahn)
    Orchestrated for soprano & chamber orchestra
    for soprano Renée Fleming

    “Zueignung” (R. Strauss)
    arranged for soprano & chamber orchestra
    for soprano Renée Fleming

    Click here for full list of works.

Listen

Ghosts of Iron, Memories of Stone (12’)
A surround-sound reflection on nature, grief, and echoes of history, through landscapes of Valley Forge
2222 4131 timp+3 hp pno/cel strings
Winner, Juilliard Orchestra Composer Competition

Crois en nous (5’)
“Believe in us”: on love’s vulnerability and resilience over life’s coldest hardships
Baritone, cello quartet
French text by the composer

Anakhronismos (7')
A modern interpretation of the prelude and fugue
Piano (solo)

News

"This young composer [Goldschmitz] paints a visionary piece, with exquisite sound, drama, and clarity of thought, as well as with heartfelt emotion and focused intensity."

— Mark Greenfest, SoundWordSight Arts Magazine, about Ghosts of Iron, Memories of Stone

“That same [resonant] tone [of Violinist Asi Matathias] infused poignancy into the world premiere of Chason Goldschmitz’s Impermanence, a meditation on time’s passing.”

— Bruce Hodges, Strad Magazine

Contact

For inquiries regarding purchasing or renting scores, new commissions, arrangements, or music project consultations, please fill out the form below.