SHORT BIO

​

Edgar Fikes Girtain IV, is an American composer of classical music. He earned a Bachelor's degree in Music Education (BM) from Rutgers University, in addition to a Master's degree in Music Theory and Composition (MA), primarily under John Rojak (Trombone) and Charles Fussell (Composition). He earned his Doctorate (PhD) in Music Composition on scholarship at SUNY Buffalo under David Felder. He lived and worked in Puerto Montt, Chile from 2012-2024, arriving first as a volunteer school teacher. His compositions, appreciated for their "immediatley captivating" appeal (New York Times), imagination, structural clarity, and emotional depth, are frequently performed in conservatories and concert halls throught the Americas, Western Europe, and East Asia. He is the winner of the American Prize among numerous other grants, scholarships, and accolades.
 

Dr. Girtain currently serves as the Director of Choirs and Music education at Western Colorado University in Gunnison, Colorado, as well as the music director of St. Peter's Catholic church, also in Gunnison. Previously he was organist at the Lutheran Church of Puerto Montt, founder of the Southern Chilean Composers Forum, and from 2019-2024, director of the Casa de las Artes at the Universidad Austral de Chile's Puerto Montt Campus, where he performed and organized hundreds of concerts throughout rural southern Chile. In Southern Chile, his work as music educatior and performer, arranger, and composer has been widely recognized. In 2022, his climate change cantata, "Otro Viento Cantará," premiered at the Teatro del Lago as part of the "Puedes Cantar" program by the Ibáñez Atkinson Foundation, featuring over 300 children from schools in the Los Lagos region. In the same year, he was honored by the municipality of Puerto Montt for his composition, "Una Joya Perdida." His music is available through First String Press, JW Pepper, and his website, www.edgarfgirtainiv.com.

​​

Long Bio and CV available on request