A native of Brooklyn, New York, composer/violinist Justine F. Chen has been the recipient of many prestigious awards and commissions, including prizes from BMI and ASCAP. Organizations and performers who have commissioned and performed her works include New York City Opera, New York City Ballet, The Juilliard School, New York Festival of Song, New Juilliard Ensemble, Washington Ballet, Brooklyn Philharmonic, FLUX Quartet, Elements Quartet, Vinca Quartet, New York Miniaturist Ensemble, Concertante, Arial Wind Ensemble, Chamber Dance Project, and the Broyhill Ensemble.
She studied violin and composition in the pre-college division of The Juilliard School, and trained as a dancer at the School of American Ballet. As a dancer, she performed in various productions with New York City Ballet at the New York State Theater. Her acceptance into Juilliard’s College Division marked her the first violin and composition double-major in Juilliard history. Among her principal composition teachers are Robert Beaser, David Diamond, and Andrew Thomas.
Because of her unique inter-disciplinary background, Ms. Chen has a keen interest in artistic collaborations. To this end, she has written incidental music for numerous theatrical productions from a young age, including Arthur Miller’s The Crucible and Shakespeare’s Macbeth. In its 2001-2002 season, The Playwright’s Theater in New Jersey produced James Glossman’s award-winning adaptation of Jim Lehrer’s novel, The Special Prisoner, with Justine’s incidental music that juxtaposed soundscapes of the modern world with the musical traditions of Noh theater. Critics praised her work as “… A distinct asset is the atmospheric original score, performed by composer Justine Chen, who uses … traditional kabuki sound effects.” (Robert L. Daniels, Variety.com), “Justine F. Chen’s musical motifs and sound effects add the necessary tension and her presence on the stage provides a visual third dimension that suits the stark atmosphere.” (Liz Keill, Independent Press,) “Justine Chen’s music and sound effects using traditional instruments punctuated with efficient lighting to create really effective theater support flashbacks and a trio of actors playing a myriad of roles.” (Pat Ferro). In 2001, she collaborated with digital artist Yewon Cho in scoring a short animation Trilemma, which was selected for and screened at such prestigious festivals as the Hiroshima Animation Festival, the New York Expo, the Student Academy Awards, Anima Mundi in South America, and broadcast on PBS in “Reel New York” June 2002.
She collaborated with choreographer Katarzyna Skarpetowska on Perpetual Flux, a dance premiered at Alice Tully Hall in 1998. This piece was subsequently programmed on Juilliard’s 1998 Summer Dance Tour. Other collaborations include Of Roots and Stones, a work with Alvin Ailey’s Iyun Harrison, performed in the Juilliard Spring Dance Concert, by the Juilliard Dance Ensemble and Orchestra at The Juilliard Theater in 2000. The New York Times said of this piece, “Justine Fang Chen… blended popular dance rhythms into the kind of propulsive, emotionally resonant score that choreographers tend to dream of.” In the summer of 2000, she held the Robert and Lilian Turchin Chair as Composer-in-Residence of the Appalachian Summer Festival in Boone, North Carolina. There she collaborated with up-and-coming choreographer Adam Hougland, members of The Juilliard Dance Ensemble, and the Broyhill Chamber Ensemble in the creation of a chamber work, Stand Nine.
As a violinist, she has performed extensively throughout the world and specializes in the performance and interpretation of contemporary music. As a scholar, she has lectured on electronic music, and Mario Davidovsky and his Synchronisms series. Since 1999, she has been actively studying the intricacies of interactive computer music program MAX/MSP. Her studies, guided by Mari Kimura, cutting-edge violinist and MAX/MSP programmer, has resulted in her composition and performance of several interactive pieces, including a computer-enhanced chamber opera for The Juilliard School. This chamber opera, The Maiden Tower, was also presented as a part of New York City Opera’s VOX: Showcasing American Composers in May 2006.
Recent collaborations include a work with choreographer Adam Hougland for a project run by the New York Choreographic Institute, in conjunction with New York City Ballet, and a composer-writer project with ComposersCollaborative, with Regie Cabico. Recent premieres include scenes from her second opera project, Jeanne, based on the life of Joan of Arc, which will be performed in excerpts by New York City Opera in their VOX 2008 Showcase on May 11, 2008. She is composer-in-residence for Long Leaf Opera, and is writing a youth opera based on Macbeth, which will be premiered June 11th and 12th, 2008. In December 2008, Chants Libres will be presenting scenes from The Maiden Tower in Montréal.
Her current projects are a song cycle for soprano Jennifer Zetlan, to be premiered in March 2009, a violin concerto for the world-renowned violinist Nai-Yuan Hu for performance in Taiwan in December 2009, finishing up Jeanne, and beginning her next opera.
She completed her doctoral studies in composition at The Juilliard School in 2005. She currently heads the music department at the Pierrepont School in Westport, Connecticut, where she has taught since 2004.
