Julian Wachner

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

Julian Wachner was born in 1969 in Hollywood, CA into a musical household—his mother, Mary Spire, was a pianist, and his former stepfather, Robert Cole, was a conductor.

He 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.

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

While a student there, he was appointed the University Organist and Choirmaster at Marsh Chapel.

Many of 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.

He first came to public attention with Canticles (1991, revised 1994), a work for chorus and orchestra written as a response to the Gulf War and as a companion piece to Fauré's Requiem.

In 1995, he and Peter Watchorn founded the Boston Bach Ensemble, a period instrument orchestra and choir.

He 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.

From 1996 to 2006, he was Director of the Providence Singers in Providence, RI.

From 1999 to 2002, he directed the Young Artists Composition Program at the Tanglewood Institute.

During his tenure at BU, Wachner also headed multiple Boston-area arts institutions.

In 1999 he conducted the premier performance of The Magdelene Passion, by composer Elaine Bearer, with the Providence Singers, an hour-long oratorio with five soloists, chorus, organ and chamber orchestra.

Their recording of Bach's Christmas Oratorio, released in 2001, helped launch Watchorn's Musica Omnia label in 1998.

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

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.

As associate professor, Wachner served as the principal conductor of Opera McGill and occasionally conducted the McGill Symphony and Contemporary Music Ensemble.

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

While in Montreal, Wachner also founded and directed the Bach-Academie de Montréal (now the Montreal Bach Festival) and served as Director of Music of the Presbyterian Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul.

From 2008 to 2017, he served as the Director of The Washington Chorus.

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

His complete choral works to date were released in two volumes by Naxos Records in 2010 and 2014.

Wachner is the author, with Kevin J. Moroney, of Psalms for All People: An Inclusive-Language Resource for Praying and Singing (Church Publishing) ISBN 9781640655614.

On March 13, 2022, The New York Times reported a sexual assault allegation against Wachner, relating to a 2014 incident.

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

He was fired on March 14.

Wachner, through an attorney, denied the accusations.

The Chorus released a CD of Christmas carols in 2010, featuring several arrangements by Wachner himself.

From 2011 to 2022, he served as the Director of Music and the Arts at Trinity Wall Street, conducting the Choir of Trinity Wall Street, the Trinity Baroque Orchestra, and NOVUS NY.

Wachner recorded five albums with these ensembles, primarily for the Musica Omnia label.

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.

In his first season there, he established NOVUS NY, a contemporary music ensemble.

His 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.

Under Wachner's direction, the Chorus also performed with the Rolling Stones in the final concert of their "50 and Counting" tour in 2013.

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

As a guest conductor, he has led ensembles including the Philadelphia Orchestra, Juilliard Opera, and San Francisco Opera, and has participated in festivals including the Spoleto Festival USA, Glimmerglass Festival, Lincoln Center Festival, BAM Next Wave Festival, and the New York Philharmonic Biennial.

As a composer, he has published over 60 musical works (see below), many of which are sacred works for chorus.

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

On March 14, 2022, the General Theological Seminary removed all mentions of him from its website.

Wachner's website states that he currently resides in Indianapolis with his wife and two children.