About Me
(PC: Justin Gamble Photography)
Chris Neiner is a composer, performer, educator, and concert director based in Cleveland, Ohio. His music has been praised for “zazzy colors, pleasant shocks, and melting cadences” (Cleveland Classical) and received recognition from the ASCAP Morton Gould Young Composer Awards, the American Modern Ensemble, and the Flute New Music Consortium. In 2026, Neiner received an Individual Excellence Award from the Ohio Arts Council and was an artist-in-residence at the Ellis-Beauregard Foundation in Rockland, Maine. Since 2023, he has been a co-artistic director and pianist for the Sunday Studio Series, a chamber music concert series in Cleveland’s historic Little Italy neighborhood. Neiner is also the chairman of the Cleveland Composers Guild and a composition mentor for the Contemporary Youth Orchestra.
His commissions include Figures with Birds for NO EXIT New Music Ensemble, Tales of Euclid Beach Park for Stars in the Classics, 4 x 4 for the Ohio Music Teachers Association, and Happy Birthday, Alan!, commissioned to celebrate the 90th birthday of esteemed American cello pedagogue Alan Harris. Most recently, Tales of Euclid Beach Park was featured on WKSU Ideastream Public Media’s music podcast Shuffle and included in Cleveland Public Library’s The People’s Playlist, a curated streaming platform of music by Northeast Ohio artists.
The music of Chris Neiner has appeared on programs by the Grammy award-winning Cleveland Chamber Symphony, Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra, Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra, Minnesota Sinfonia, Boston New Music Initiative, Loadbang, Copper Street Brass Quintet, New Century Ensemble, North Coast Winds, Red Hedgehog Trio, Minnesota Symphonic Winds, Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphonies, Rocky Ridge Music Center, and Sewanee Summer Music Festival.
Neiner has also gained a reputation as a highly sought-out arranger and music editor, working with organizations such as Reimagining Opera for Kids, Vietnamese American Society for Creative Arts and Music (VASCAM), Cleveland Pops Orchestra, The Brickhouse Network, and It’s CeCe! TV.
Neiner completed a master's degree at the Cleveland Institute of Music, studying with Keith Fitch. Previously, he studied composition and horn performance at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music with composers Claude Baker, Aaron Travers, P. Q. Phan, Don Freund, and hornist Richard Seraphinoff. He is an alumnus of the American Composers Orchestra’s EarShot Readings, Suncoast Composer Fellowship Program, OAcademy Gabriela Ortiz Composing Studio, Mostly Modern Festival, Im
His commissions include Figures with Birds for NO EXIT New Music Ensemble, Tales of Euclid Beach Park for Stars in the Classics, 4 x 4 for the Ohio Music Teachers Association, and Happy Birthday, Alan!, commissioned to celebrate the 90th birthday of esteemed American cello pedagogue Alan Harris. Most recently, Tales of Euclid Beach Park was featured on WKSU Ideastream Public Media’s music podcast Shuffle and included in Cleveland Public Library’s The People’s Playlist, a curated streaming platform of music by Northeast Ohio artists.
The music of Chris Neiner has appeared on programs by the Grammy award-winning Cleveland Chamber Symphony, Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra, Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra, Minnesota Sinfonia, Boston New Music Initiative, Loadbang, Copper Street Brass Quintet, New Century Ensemble, North Coast Winds, Red Hedgehog Trio, Minnesota Symphonic Winds, Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphonies, Rocky Ridge Music Center, and Sewanee Summer Music Festival.
Neiner has also gained a reputation as a highly sought-out arranger and music editor, working with organizations such as Reimagining Opera for Kids, Vietnamese American Society for Creative Arts and Music (VASCAM), Cleveland Pops Orchestra, The Brickhouse Network, and It’s CeCe! TV.
Neiner completed a master's degree at the Cleveland Institute of Music, studying with Keith Fitch. Previously, he studied composition and horn performance at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music with composers Claude Baker, Aaron Travers, P. Q. Phan, Don Freund, and hornist Richard Seraphinoff. He is an alumnus of the American Composers Orchestra’s EarShot Readings, Suncoast Composer Fellowship Program, OAcademy Gabriela Ortiz Composing Studio, Mostly Modern Festival, Im
Upcoming Performances
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October 25
Happy Birthday, Alan! Cleveland Cello Society St. Paul's Episcopal Church Cleveland Heights, Ohio |
November 1
Red Riding Pictures Proudly Presents Stars in the Classics Private Manor Shaker Heights, Ohio |
News
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Podcast Official! I chat about Tales of Euclid Beach Park and Sunday Studios Series with WKSU Ideastream Public Media. Listen to the full episode at ideastream.org/series/shuffle or on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
I received an Individual Excellence Award from the Ohio Arts Council. I was honored with this award for my compositions Morceau Pour Sill and Tales of Euclid Beach Park.
I was honored to be an artist-in-residence at the Ellis-Beauregard Foundation1 This amazing organization supports artists across disciplines with time, resources, and space to create.
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The Sunday Studio Series completed the third season with Masquerading Melodies, a concert of music inspired by commedia dell'arte. Our programs are now regularly season by over 100 people across our weekend shows.
NO EXIT New Music Ensemble premiered Figures with Birds at the Cleveland Museum of Art. This concert celebrated art of the Cleveland School, an 20th century art community in Ohio.
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Many Universes was selected for Earshot Readings with Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra. I joined composers Ai Daixuan and Sepehr Pirasteh for this very amazing opportunity!
Stars in the Classics commissioned Tales of Euclid Beach Park, a new piano quartet inspired by the historical amusement park that was a must-see in Cleveland for 74 years!
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