Joseph A. Santo holds a Doctor of Musical Arts
degree in Composition from The Catholic University of America where he is presently Assistant Dean for Academics and for Graduate
Studies at the Benjamin T. Rome School of Music. In addition to his administrative duties, he also teaches in the Theory
Division of the music school. The composer has been active in music education for over thirty years and a composer throughout
his professional career. He is a member of ASCAP and recipient of ASCAPlus Awards. He also holds active membership
in The College Music Society, The American Music Center, the Society of Composers, Inc., and Music Educators National Conference.
The composer has written in a variety of genres, from solo works to chamber works to large scale compositions, including a
concert Vespers for soloists, chorus, and orchestra, using texts in Latin, Spanish, and indigenous Latin American languages.
His Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, premiered in 2000, was the recipient of a generous grant from The American Music Center,
through its Composer Assistance Program. His song cycle for soprano and piano, entitled Rimas sacras, on medieval to
16th century Spanish texts, was premiered in 2003. His Trois épiphanies, a three-movement work for piano solo,
premiered in 2004, was chosen for performance at the 2006 Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference of the College Music Society. Though
some of his compositional output has been in the twelve-tone serial tradition, he has in recent years found an idiom more
suitable to his temperament, without necessarily entirely abandoning serialization of certain elements. His most recent works
often use centric forces that may or may not employ semi-traditional verticalities. Rhythmic and technical complexities are
characteristics of much of the output, providing challenging experiences to performers willing to take them on. Interest in
religious tradition has provided the incentive for a number of sacred works. The composer’s lifelong interest
in languages has given the stimulus for music using texts in Latin, Anglo-Saxon, medieval and modern French, Neapolitan, and
Spanish, among others.
