Robert Paterson Composer

American composer Robert Paterson is a true New Yorker—born and bred in Buffalo, he lived in Rochester and Ithaca for over ten years, in New York City for over twenty years, and now lives in Saratoga Springs, near the Adirondacks. Paterson’s colorful music embraces a wide variety of themes, everything from goddesses and online dating to mathematics and the environment. His music is filled with emotion and fierce rhythmic energy, marked by elegance, wit, and meticulous craftsmanship. Named Composer of The Year by the Classical Recording Foundation at Carnegie Hall, Paterson is the winner of the Alfred I. DuPont Award, and his opera Three Way won the Grammy® under Best Classical Producer of the Year. His music is often a Best of the Year pick on National Public Radio. His orchestral tone poem, Dark Mountains, regularly airs on NPR’s Performance Today. Three Way premiered with Nashville Opera, then BAM (Brooklyn Academy of Music), and across the United States. Minnesota Orchestra, Louisville Orchestra, The Oratorio Society of New York, Buffalo Philharmonic, Albany Pro Musica, Albany Symphony, Musica Sacra, Austin Symphony, Vermont Symphony, and ensembles worldwide perform his works. Paterson gives masterclasses at the Curtis Institute of Music, New York University, the Aspen Music Festival, the Cleveland Institute of Music, and more. He is the Artistic Director and house composer for Mostly Modern Projects. Robert is a lifelong vegan and advocates for animals and the environment, celebrating the natural world with ground-breaking works such as his Triple Concerto, A New Eaarth, Listen, and I Go Among Trees.

Robert Paterson Composer’s tracks

• Alto Saxophone Concerto (MMF 2026) - II. Cosmopolitan by Robert Paterson Composer
• Alto Saxophone Concerto (MMF 2026) - IV. Practical Magic by Robert Paterson Composer
• Alto Saxophone Concerto (MMF 2026) - I. Shaken, Not Stirred by Robert Paterson Composer
• Alto Saxophone Concerto (MMF 2026) - III. Some Like It Hot by Robert Paterson Composer
• The New Colossus for SATB Choir (World Premiere) by Robert Paterson Composer
• Wound Up for String Quartet and Cajón by Robert Paterson Composer
• Unwind for String Quartet and Hand Pan by Robert Paterson Composer
• Kama for Choir and Handpan by Robert Paterson Composer
• Humanus Ex Machina by Robert Paterson Composer
• Postlude No. 1 by Robert Paterson Composer