Samuel Adler (b. March 4, 1928) is the composer of more than 400 published works, including five operas, six symphonies, 12 concerti, nine string quartets, and five oratorios, all which have been performed across the globe, including the New York Philharmonic and the Berlin Philharmonic, and recorded on several labels. He is professor emeritus with Eastman School of Music, where he served on the composition faculty from 1966 to 1995 and as chair of the Composition Department. He most recently has been a member of the composition faculty at The Juilliard School.
His compositions have been commissioned by orchestras worldwide as well as the National Endowment for the Arts, the Ford and Rockefeller foundations, and the City of Jerusalem. Adler is the author of three books on choral conducting, sight singing, and orchestration. Born in Germany and raised in Massachusetts, he was educated at Boston and Harvard universities. Adler has given master classes and workshops at hundreds of universities and festivals worldwide and has served as conductor with many major symphony orchestras. Past awards for his impressive work include the American Academy of Arts and Letters, Eastman School’s Eisenhard Award for Distinguished Teaching, Composer of the Year by the American Guild of Organists, and the Aaron Copland Award by ASCAP for Lifetime Achievement in Music. In 2008 Adler was inducted into the American Classical Music Hall of Fame.