Steven Crino is a composer that seeks to tell relevant stories through emotionally rich and intimate music. His music has been performed by ensembles and soloists, such as Peter Sheppard Skaerved, The Podcast Opera Company, The Boston New Music Initiative, The Philadelphia Experimental Theatre Ensemble, and The Temple University Singers. Steven's first opera, Tomb of Beauty, is the third place winner of the 2021 American Prize, and his second opera, Friends House, was selected The Aural Compass Projects' Emerging Composer Competition. He has won other numerous awards including a 2022 Extraordinary Talent Award from the Rodrigo Landa-Romero International Piano Composition Competition, and was the winner of the 2018 3rd International A.D. Kastalsky Choral Music Competition. He is the recipient of the Ada Arens Morawetz Memorial Award, the Richard M. Duris Scholarship for Excellence in Classical Music, and the Florence Gould Foundation Scholarship. Steven’s music has been reviewed by publications such as the Hong Kong Cellist Society, Philadelphia City Paper and Phindie Magazine, and was featured on Maryland’s Classical Radio station, WBJC, 91.5’s ‘Composer of the Month’ Podcast series.
Steven received his Doctor of Musical Arts Degree from the Peabody Conservatory, where he also completed degrees in Composition (M.M.) and Theory Pedagogy (M.M.), studying with Michael Hersch and Kevin Puts. He was a Graduate Assistant, and Graduate Teaching Fellow of Music Theory at Peabody, working under the tutelage of Omar Thomas, Ildar Khannanov, and Kip Wile. Prior to his time at Peabody, Steven received a B.M. in Music Composition from Temple University, and studied harmony, counterpoint, and composition privately with Benjamin C.S. Boyle. He currently resides in the Philadelphia area.