Alejandro Bernard-Papachryssanthou is a composer, arranger, pianist and music educator living in Ithaca, New York. He maintains a robust private-lesson schedule and performs regularly as a freelance musician. He has enjoyed lecturing at Ithaca College this past semester, and other notable faculty positions that he has held were for music programs at the Ithaca Summer Academy, the Interlochen Summer Arts Academy, the Community School of Music and Arts and Opus Ithaca. Alejandro has given master classes at both Cornell and Indiana University. Alejandro was the founding music director of New Roots Charter School in Ithaca, where he established a diverse, inclusive curriculum. He is currently the Instrumental Music Director of St. James AME Zion Church.
Alejandro holds a BM in Music Education from Ithaca College where he studied trumpet with Kim Dunnick, and jazz with Steve Brown. He holds an MM in Jazz Studies from Indiana University where he studied with Luke Gillespie and Shigeo Neriki.
Alejandro’s chamber orchestra piece, “Sunset Colors” was premiered at the 2017 Interlochen Summer Arts Academy and later performed at the 2018 Michigan All-State Festival conducted by Scott Laird.