All material found in the Press Releases section is provided by parties entirely independent of Musical America, which is not responsible for content.
Press Releases
American Composers Orchestra Hosts Searchlight: 2025 Gala and Creative Catalyst Awards
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Katy Salomon | Primo Artists | VP, Public Relations
katy@primoartists.com | 646.801.9406
Contact: Saratoga Schaefer | Primo Artists | Publicist
saratoga@primoartists.com | 646.470.4456
American Composers Orchestra Hosts Searchlight: 2025 Gala and Creative Catalyst Awards
October 16, 2025 at 48 Wall Street in NYC
Honoring Two Luminary Couples: Ray and Vivian Chew and Elizabeth and Justus Schlichting, Exemplars of Core ACO Values: Artistry, Creativity, Community, and Equity
Hosted by Lara Downes, with Musical Performances by Dr. Edward W. Hardy, Daniel Rozin, Gabriel Jenks, Mali Irene, and Valerie Simpson
and Video Design by Trevor New
Proceeds Benefit ACO’s EarShot Composer Advancement Programs, Orchestral Performances, and Educational Initiatives
“For a young composer of orchestral music, the greatest challenge is getting one’s works played and heard. Addressing that challenge is… American Composers Orchestra.” – The Dallas Morning News
New York, NY (September 23, 2025) – Called an “essential organization” (The New York Times) with “an expansive vision of orchestral composition” (Represent Classical), the American Composers Orchestra (ACO) presents an evening of honors and top-tier performances during its fourth annual Gala and Creative Catalyst Awards on Thursday, October 16, 2025 at 6:00 PM at 48 Wall Street in New York City. ACO’s gala, co-chaired by Diana Elton and Melin Tan-Geller, honors the contributions of visionary leaders who exemplify the organization’s core values of artistry, creativity, community, and equity.
This year’s gala embraces a theme of “Searchlight” as ACO celebrates the artists and visionaries who, in every era of uncertainty, have served as guiding lights and illuminated new paths forward when the world needs them most. The evening, hosted by pianist Lara Downes, honors two luminary couples, Ray and Vivian Chew and Elizabeth and Justus Schlichting. Showcasing all that American orchestral music can truly be and do, the evening will include performances by Downes; composer and violinist Dr. Edward W. Hardy; interactive artist Daniel Rozin; Jacobs School of Music Associate Professor of Music (Composition) Gabriel Jenks; vocal artist, composer, and improviser Mali Irene; and GRAMMY® nominated singer-songwriter Valerie Simpson; with video design by electro-acoustic violist and composer Trevor New.
This genre-bending experience, rooted in Prohibition Era rebellion and Gatsby-esque opulence, is a gathering of artists and their champions in a celebration of artistic disruption. Gala supporters will enjoy an evening of original music from leading artists while celebrating ACO’s work to expand the definition of American orchestral music to ensure an inclusive and vibrant future. Cocktail hour begins at 6:00 PM, with dinner and performances starting at 7:00 PM.
Proceeds from the gala will support ACO’s full suite of programs, including orchestral performances at Carnegie Hall; EarShot Readings, the invaluable mentorship program for early-to-mid career composers to hear their scores rehearsed and performed by top orchestras across the U.S., Canada and Mexico; EarShot CoLABoratory Fellowships, a platform for composers whose work is experimental and/or rooted in musical traditions underrepresented in the orchestral repertoire; and Sonic Spark, ACO’s creativity-based educational programs for students from middle school to college-age that offer musical training and composing instruction to more than 500 students in New York City, New Jersey, and Detroit. Further advancing the work of the next generation of composers, the evening also supports ACO’s international EarShot Publishing initiative, administered in partnership with Boosey & Hawkes, and professional audio and video recordings of all New York City-based engagements for its orchestra, including programs at Carnegie Hall and New York-based EarShot Readings, to be commercially released by Platoon.
As honorees for the 2025 Gala, ACO has selected luminaries representing the artistry, technology, and humanitarian impact contained in music. Composer, producer, and music director Ray Chew is known for leading bands for shows including Dancing with the Stars, American Idol, and both the Macy's Fourth of July Fireworks Spectacular and Thanksgiving Day Parade. Chew has worked with legendary artists such as Aretha Franklin, Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder, Carrie Underwood, Alicia Keys, and Rihanna. Vivian Chew is a pioneering music executive, having held positions at Polygram (now Universal Music Group) and Sony Music. She is the founder of Timeone International, specializing in global artist promotion and strategic partnerships. Together, they run Chew Entertainment, producing major events like A Night of Inspiration at Carnegie Hall. Their work blends artistic excellence with a passion for mentoring and community impact, as highlighted through their Power2Inspire Foundation.
Elizabeth and Justus Schlichting are visionary patrons whose generosity has shaped the future of American orchestral music. Since they began commissioning in 2012, they have supported more than 450 new works, uplifting a generation of composers and expanding the repertoire in bold and lasting ways. Their impact aligns powerfully with ACO’s mission: to champion bold new voices in American orchestral music and ensure that creative artists thrive. Elizabeth’s passion for music was nurtured by a family of musicians. Justus, a lifelong classical concertgoer, studied trombone with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s Frank Crisafulli and composition with Olly Wilson at Oberlin—experiences that deepened his commitment to music as a living, evolving art form.
Prominent composers and artists commissioned by the Schlichtings who will be in attendance on October 16 include Timo Andres, Yuval Sharon, Missy Mazzoli, Christopher Cerrone, Gabriel Kahane, James Matheson, Dai Wei, Eric Nathan, and Nina Shekhar.
Program Information
Searchlight: 2025 American Composers Orchestra Gala & Creative Catalyst Awards
Thursday, October 16, 2025 at 6:00 PM
48 Wall Street | New York, NY
Sponsorship Levels and Ticket Information
Tickets: For sponsorship levels and ticket information, visit the gala web page or email Kimberly Knox at kimberly@americancomposers.org
Link: www.americancomposers.org/performances-events/searchlight-2025-gala-and-creative-catalyst-awards
Program:
6:00pm – Cocktail Hour
7:00pm – Dinner & Performances
Hosted By:
Honorees:
Elizabeth & Justus Schlichting
Performances by:
Video Design by Trevor New
Proceeds benefit ACO EarShot composer advancement programs, orchestral performances, and educational initiatives.
Honorary Committee:
Raven Chacon
Philip Glass
About American Composers Orchestra
In 1977, a collective of fearless New York City musicians came together to form the American Composers Orchestra (ACO), an ensemble dedicated to the creation, celebration, performance, and promotion of orchestral music by American composers. With nearly 50 years committed to artistry, creativity, community, and equity, ACO has blossomed into a national institution that not only cultivates and develops the careers of living composers but also provides composers a direct pipeline to partnerships with many of America’s major symphony orchestras.
In addition to its annual season, presented by Carnegie Hall since 1987, the ACO serves as a New York City hub where the most forward-thinking experimental American musicians come together to hone and realize new art by developing talent, established composers, and underrepresented voices, increasing the regional, national, and international awareness of the infinite variety of American orchestral music.
ACO produces national educational programs for all ages, and composer advancement programs to foster a community of creators, audience, performers, collaborators, and funders – all dedicated to American composition.
To date, ACO has performed music by 800 American composers, including over 350 world premieres and newly commissioned works. Recent and notable commissioned composers include John Luther Adams, Andy Akiho, Clarice Assad, Carlos Bandera, Courtney Bryan, Valerie Coleman, Dai Wei, Du Yun, inti figgis-vizueta, Marcus Gilmore, Vijay Iyer, Yvette Janine Jackson, Joan La Barbara, Steve Lehman, Tania León, Paula Matthusen, Trevor New, Mendi Keith Obadike, Ellen Reid, Daniel Bernard Roumain, Carlos Simon, Henry Threadgill, and many more.
Now encompassing all of ACO’s composer advancement initiatives, EarShot is the first ongoing, systematic program for developing relationships between composers and orchestras on the national level. Through orchestral readings, CoLABoratory fellowships, consortium commissions, publishing, and professional development, EarShot ensures a vibrant musical future by investing in creativity today. Serving over 350 composers since its inception, ACO Readings in NYC began in 1991, and since 2008, national Readings have been offered in partnership with orchestras across the country in collaboration with American Composers Forum, the League of American Orchestras, and New Music USA. EarShot Readings composers have gone on to win every major composition award, including the Pulitzer, GRAMMY®, Grawemeyer, American Academy of Arts and Letters, and Rome Prizes.
ACO has received numerous awards for its work, including those from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and from BMI Foundation, Inc., recognizing the orchestra’s outstanding contribution to American music. ASCAP has awarded ACO its annual prize for adventurous programming 35 times, singling out ACO as “the orchestra that has done the most for new American music in the United States.” ACO received the inaugural MetLife Award for Excellence in Audience Engagement, and a proclamation from the New York City Council. Learn more at www.americancomposers.org.
# # #
American Composers Orchestra is grateful to the many organizations that make its programs possible including Arthur F. & Alice E. Adams Charitable Fund, Altman Foundation, Amphion Foundation, Benevity, Aaron Copland Fund for Music, BMI Foundation, BMI, Inc., Charity Navigator's Giving Basket, Cheswatyr Foundation, Edward T. Cone Foundation, Communities Foundation of Texas, The Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, Alice M. Ditson Fund of Columbia University, Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, Ford Foundation’s Good Neighbor Committee, Give Lively, Francis B. Goelet Charitable Trust, Fromm Music Foundation, Steven R. Gerber Trust, G. Schirmer/Wise Music Foundation, The Hearst Foundation, Howard Gilman Foundation, Jephson Educational Trusts, Jerome Foundation, MacMillan Family Foundation, Mellon Foundation, New Music USA’s Organization Fund, The New York Community Trust (Musical Arts Fund, Clara Lewisohn Rossin Trust, and Edward and Sally Van Lier Fund), Pacific Harmony Foundation, Paypal Giving Fund, Rexford Fund, Sphinx Venture Fund, TD Charitable Foundation, Turrell Fund, UKOGF Foundation, Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation.
Corporate gifts to match employee contributions are made by Goldman Sachs, Deutsche Bank, Triton Container International Incorporated of North America, and Neiman Marcus.
Public funds are provided by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature, Office of Brooklyn Borough President Reynoso, and the National Endowment for the Arts.
FEATURED JOBS
RENT A PHOTO
