Headshot courtesy of Tiffany Showalter
Brian Junttila (b. 1997)
currently serves as the Director of Festival Operations for the Heifetz International Music Institute in Staunton, VA. Although he has years of administrative experience working in operations and development, Brian is also a creative, composing music for concert settings and analyzing music. As a composer, his works mix the various sound worlds of the last century, incorporating traditional tonal processes with abstract 20th-century techniques. Brian maintains a growing body of music and sustains relationships with performers in a variety of artistic media. In addition to musicians, he has collaborated with poets, engineers, dancers, textile weavers, graphic designers, and painters to create multidisciplinary art.
As a music theorist, Brian focuses on popular contemporary styles, notably film, video game, and radio music. He has presented at Music Theory of the Mid-Atlantic, Music Theory Southeast, Indiana University Graduate Music Research Symposium, and Music and the Moving Image. Brian won the 2026 Irna Priore Prize for Student Research for his work on differentiating manifestations of rhythmic displacement in Michelle Branch's music from the turn of the millennium. His other interests focus on rhythm and semiotics in video game music.
Brian attained his Doctor of Music in Music Theory and Composition (D.M. '26) and his Master of Music in Music Theory and Composition (M.M. '21) from Florida State University where he studied composition with Dr. Eren Gümrükçüoğlu, Dr. Liliya Ugay, Dr. Clifton Callender, and Dr. Mark Wingate. Previously, he received his Bachelor of Music in Music Composition (B.M. '19) from James Madison University where he studied composition with Dr. Eric Guinivan and Dr. Jason Haney. Brian’s music has been performed or recorded by several institutional ensembles as well as the Polymorphia New Music Ensemble, Civitasolis Reed Quintet, Unheard-Of//Ensemble, Austin Peay State University Wind Ensemble, and James Madison University Wind Symphony. His works have also been performed at the Brevard Music Center, Atlantic Music Festival, Sewanee Summer Music Festival, and other venues internationally. These venues include the Sofia Music and Arts Festival in Bulgaria, Mozarthaus in Austria, and the Akureyri Art Museum in Iceland.
An active alumni at both James Madison University and Florida State University, Brian has had the privilege to attend and participate in music events at his alma mater on many occasions. Additionally, Brian was active as a trombonist in the Harrisonburg area, mainly performing with the Valley Wind Ensemble and returning to JMU to participate in alumni marching band and alumni pep band events.
While he was a student at JMU, he performed with the Symphony Orchestra, Wind Symphony, and Trombone Choir, and at FSU, he performed with the Wind Orchestra, Trombone Choir, and Trombone Octet. At both institutions, he was a member of several chamber groups including brass trios, quartets, and quintets. As a performer, he also champions new music, frequently performing in large ensembles created to perform student compositions. Recently, he premiered a work for trombone and fixed media by Ky Nam Nguyen entitled, "When Human Dares Not Speak" (2024).
He has also been actively conducting and recording, assisting in both roles with several new music performances, including the Polymorphia New Music Ensemble, New Music for Brass Quintet performance, and several recitals.
