Biography
James Lentini works as a composer, guitarist, and educator, with his pieces presented by numerous American performers alongside ensembles from abroad. His output covers vocal and choral writing as well as chamber and orchestral forms.
Born in Detroit on February 7, 1958, Lentini pursued studies in composition and classical guitar at Wayne State University before continuing in composition at Michigan State University. He later earned a doctorate in composition from the University of Southern California, where Morten Lauridsen numbered among his instructors. William Kanengiser, another of his teachers, requested the guitar work Westward Voyage, which earned the 2002 Segovia International Composition Prize. Lentini has produced additional guitar music, among them The Four Seasons (2005-2006), while also composing for chorus, orchestra, and mixed chamber groups. His Orchestra Hall Suite (1995), scored for bassoon, violin, viola, and cello, traces the history of Detroit’s Orchestra Hall. That suite and several other chamber pieces appear on a 2010 Naxos recording. Lentini has held teaching positions at Wayne State University and the College of New Jersey, and he served as dean of Miami University’s School of Creative Arts in Ohio. In 2020 he was named president of Molloy College. Also in 2020, Navona Records issued Through Time and Place, a survey of his orchestral compositions that includes Symphony No. 1.
Born in Detroit on February 7, 1958, Lentini pursued studies in composition and classical guitar at Wayne State University before continuing in composition at Michigan State University. He later earned a doctorate in composition from the University of Southern California, where Morten Lauridsen numbered among his instructors. William Kanengiser, another of his teachers, requested the guitar work Westward Voyage, which earned the 2002 Segovia International Composition Prize. Lentini has produced additional guitar music, among them The Four Seasons (2005-2006), while also composing for chorus, orchestra, and mixed chamber groups. His Orchestra Hall Suite (1995), scored for bassoon, violin, viola, and cello, traces the history of Detroit’s Orchestra Hall. That suite and several other chamber pieces appear on a 2010 Naxos recording. Lentini has held teaching positions at Wayne State University and the College of New Jersey, and he served as dean of Miami University’s School of Creative Arts in Ohio. In 2020 he was named president of Molloy College. Also in 2020, Navona Records issued Through Time and Place, a survey of his orchestral compositions that includes Symphony No. 1.
Albums
Singles
