Three Albums For Your Consideration

 

Turandot: Christopher Tin Finale

Best Classical Compendium
Best Contemporary Classical Composition
Best Engineered Album, Classical
Best Immersive Audio Album

Turandot: Christopher Tin Finale is Christopher's bold debut in the opera world: a completion of the most famous unfinished work in the opera canon, Giacomo Puccini's Turandot. Commissioned by Washington National Opera and with a libretto by Emmy-winning playwright Susan Soon He Stanton (HBO's Succession), it premiered at the Kennedy Center to rave reviews and six sellout nights before being unveiled on a global stage at the Men's Figure Skating Finals of the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milano Cortina, 100 years after the opera original debuted in the same city.

 

FEATURING
Christine Goerke as Turandot
Clay Hilley as Calàf
Ethan Vincent, Jonathan Pierce Rhodes, Nicholas Huff
English National Opera Chorus
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Conducted by Christopher Tin and Matthew Quinn
Produced by Sean Flahaven and Timothy Hsia
Recorded by Andrew Dudman, Martin Kistner, Joe Sleep, and Charlie Pilzer
Mixed by Rich Breen
Mastered by Paul Blakemore
Executive Produced by Ban Banerjee and Piotr Michalak
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Its sound and attitude, while contemporary, grow organically from Puccini’s original, like a savvy modern addition on a historic building. ... edgier than Puccini but still tonal, and Turandot’s initial insistence on power through violence is Wagnerian in scope and accompanied by blaring brass.

The Wall Street Journal

 

This new World Premiere also adds the enticing music of composer Christopher Tin to the finale of this production---so we have the ravishingly soaring music of the revered composer Giacomo Puccini as well as the contributions of this refreshing modern composer.

Broadway World

 

[Translated from Italian]: Christopher Tin succeeded in the balancing act between respecting the Puccini of the two previous acts, the Puccini of the incomplete sketches and his own personality as a composer of today... In my opinion, this ending does not look out of place alongside Alfano's (first or second) and could very well enter the repertoire as a variant of the classical standard.

OperaClick

 

To craft new music for this revised story, Zambello turned to Tin, a Grammy award-winning composer who has written for film, TV and video game soundtracks.

Associated Press

 

Puccini died just before he could finish writing the opera, so the Washington National Opera enlisted a pair of powerhouses to write the last 10 minutes of the piece: Grammy-winning composer Christopher Tin (the video game “Civilization IV”) and acclaimed playwright and screenwriter Susan Soon He Stanton (HBO’s “Succession”).

WTOP

 

Kagiyama’s programme has drawn attention both for its timing — coinciding with the 100th anniversary of Turandot’s premiere at the La Scala opera house in Milan — and for its sweeping operatic arrangement, and is bound to resonate strongly with a home crowd steeped in the opera's history.

Reuters

 

“He loves singing and the voice, and a lot of contemporary composers aren’t as focused on the voice,” Zambello said... The soprano Christine Goerke, who sings Turandot on the album, said that Tin writes “so gorgeously for the voice.”

New York Times

 

Tin’s score is exceptional... Tin is a master of musical embroidery and subtle Puccini references abound, connecting the final scene convincingly to what goes before... Christopher Tin should be reflecting on this success. He has established his opera street cred and it’s time for him to commit to a full work. It is talent like his that will lead the next generation into opera houses around the world.

Reaction

 

Tin is wise not to mimic the master and he does an interesting job of rearranging motifs and building a new kind of musical finale.

Metro Weekly

 

... this reimagining of “Turandot” is a perfect example of opera’s power to cross time and appeal to a modern audience. From its new time period to its complex and riveting tale about nature and the power of love, this production is sure to please everyone from the seasoned opera buff to the first-time viewer.

Maryland Theatre Guide

 

Sonically riveting. Even without the new ending — and Tin’s splendid musical additions, which draw sensibly from Puccini’s score while applying an entirely new emotional finish — Zambello’s “Turandot” crackles with fresh energy and some truly extraordinary singing.

Washington Post

 

For composer Tin, the task was perhaps even more delicate. He wanted to use as many of Puccini's musical sketches as possible for the ending. ... Tin, who is best known for his film and video game soundtracks, prides himself on making his work accessible.

NPR

 

Musically, Tin incorporates the same fragments Puccini left at his death, though often in novel ways—for instance, the tune for “Mio Fiore,” usually Calaf’s insistent love song, becomes a part of Turandot’s memory of her assault. The neo-romantic mode of Tin’s orchestration feels broadly continuous with the main score, though Tin adds some interesting details from traditional Chinese music...

Parterre Box

 

Tin’s music is muscular and modern without losing satisfying, even gorgeous melodic lines.

DC Theater Arts

 

[Tin's] music convincingly extends Puccini’s idiom to encompass these new dramatic ideas, and draws out shades of meaning that the libretto implies... Zambello and the WNO deserve credit for taking a risk here, and Stanton and Tin deserve kudos for making it pay off.

Washington Classical Review

 


 

 

Song Offerings: Choral Works by Christopher Tin

Best Choral Performance
Best Contemporary Classical Composition
Best Engineered Album, Classical

Song Offerings is a collection of two multi-movement choral works exploring spirituality and ephemerality, with a theatrical flavor. Performed by Denver's premiere choral ensemble Kantorei and co-conducted by their Artistic Director Joel M. Rinsema, Song Offerings is Christopher's latest release as a major label artist on Universal's Decca Gold label.

 

FEATURING
Kantorei
Alicia Rigsby (Piano)
Dylan Tyree and David Short (Cellos)
Nicolas Recubar (Bass)
Remy Le Boeuf (Soprano Sax)

Conducted by Joel M. Rinsema and Christopher Tin
Produced by Blanton Alspaugh
Recorded and Mixed by Mark Donahue
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In the end, Song Offerings, Christopher Tin’s “joyful rebellion,” with big assists from Charles Anthony Silvestri, Kantorei directed by Joel M. Rinsema, the accompanying musicians, and the ancient texts, achieves holy grandeur, something burrowing deeper and more profoundly into the heart and the soul, than the sum of its parts, well beyond the naysayers’ ken but hoping to touch them too. Everyone and everything here work on a higher plane of feeling, of passion, of commitment.
Deep Roots
Conductor Joel Rinsema and the Denver-based choral ensemble Kantorei love working with composer Christopher Tin. So much so, that they commissioned Tin to compose a new work for them. The new piece is the title track of the group’s latest recording, Song Offerings, and calls for us to hold a space for joy, even in times of darkness.
Your Classical
Christopher Tin has established himself as one of the most distinctive compositional voices of his generation. A two-time Grammy Award–winning composer, he is best known for music that bridges concert halls, video games, and cinematic storytelling, with scores that have reached audiences around the world. From the global impact of his video game music to large-scale choral and orchestral works performed by leading ensembles, Tin’s writing is marked by its emotional sweep, intellectual curiosity, and deep engagement with texts drawn from history, poetry, and spiritual traditions.
Classic 107


 

 

Aether & Iron (Original Video Game Score)

Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media
Best Contemporary Classical Composition

Aether & Iron is the film-noir inspired score to Seismic Squirrel's RPG, co-composed with Alex Williamson.

 

FEATURING
FAME’S Skopje Studio Orchestra

Conducted by Arber Curri
Produced by Christopher Tin and Alex Williamson
Recorded by Dragisa Stojanov
Mixed by Joël Dollié and Alex Williamson
Mastered by Joël Dollié
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The opening “A City of Aether and Iron” is simply magnificent – bold and dramatic, rich and luxurious, with a darkly romantic string theme backed by a luscious horn countermelody, elegant woodwind textures, harp glissandi, and rolling cymbals. In the second half of the cue, the brass section takes over in a glorious celebration of rousing heroism and panache, before concluding with a bittersweet oboe love theme that overflows with classic romance. These five minutes represent some of the most spectacular game music I have heard in quite some time.
Movie Music UK
It is a marvel. Drawing on ample 19th and 20th-century harmonic structure, this orchestral recording demonstrates Tin’s ability to masterfully orchestrate even without his favorite instrument: the human voice.
RPG Fan
Like a lot of Tin's work, there's a strong melody that soars above everything else, making the theme instantly recognizable after you've heard it once.
Tech Raptor