20 Facts About Julian Wachner

Julian James Wachner was born on September 23,1969 and is an American composer, conductor, and keyboardist.

In March 2018, Julian Wachner was named Artistic Director of the Grand Rapids Bach Festival, an affiliate of the Grand Rapids Symphony, in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Julian Wachner had been put on leave on March 1,2022, by Trinity Wall Street because of the allegation.

In 2020, Julian Wachner became Professor of Music and the Arts at the General Theological Seminary in Chelsea, where his wife Emily Bloemker Julian Wachner was the seminary's Lecturer in Pastoral Theology and Director of Integrative Programs until 2020.

Julian Wachner told Slipped Disc that he was working as a short-order cook, teaching 5th and 6th grade math, and playing in a rock band in Indianapolis.

In 2025, "The Concerto Vocale Foundation, a body dedicated to historically informed performances of the works of J S Bach", hired Julian Wachner, finding that he "has been vindicated".

Julian Wachner began cello and piano lessons at age 4 at the University of Southern California, and from age 9 to 13, Wachner studied composition in New York at the Saint Thomas Choir School under Gerre Hancock.

Julian Wachner later attended the Boston University College of Fine Arts, where he studied with Lukas Foss, Theodore Antoniou, David Hoose and Marjorie Merryman.

Julian Wachner graduated in 1996 with a Doctorate of Musical Arts in composition and orchestral conducting and taught as an Assistant Professor of Sacred Music at BU's School of Theology.

Julian Wachner served as Director of the Back Bay Chorale, releasing a CD of works by Benjamin Britten with the ensemble in 2001.

Julian Wachner moved to Montreal in 2001 to become an associate professor at McGill University's Schulich School of Music, a post he held until 2011.

Julian Wachner founded and directed the Schulich Singers, a chamber choir that performs repertoire spanning all musical periods.

In 2008, Julian Wachner returned to the United States to direct the Washington Chorus.

Julian Wachner was appointed Director of Music and the Arts at Trinity Wall Street in 2011, placing him at the podium of both the church's choir and baroque orchestra.

Julian Wachner's 2012 recording of Handel's Israel in Egypt with the Trinity Choir and Trinity Baroque Orchestra was nominated for a 2013 Grammy Award for Best Choral Performance.

Many of Julian Wachner's earlier published works were liturgical in purpose, written during his tenure as University Organist and Choirmaster at Marsh Chapel in the early 1990s.

Julian Wachner first came to public attention with Canticles, a work for chorus and orchestra written as a response to the Gulf War and as a companion piece to Faure's Requiem.

Outside of the realm of sacred music, Julian Wachner has composed secular song cycles, including Sometimes I Feel Alive and Rilke Songs.

In 2012, Julian Wachner collaborated with visual artist Erika Harrsch to create a work for The River to River Festival.

On December 22,2022, Julian Wachner sued the Juilliard School for defamation.