Amir Mortezai

Biography

Amir Mortezai graduated from NYU Steinhardt in 2016 with a Master’s Degree in Theory and Composition where he studied both concert music and film scoring with Paul Chihara and took courses with Pulitzer Prize Winner Julia Wolfe. In 2018 he was the recipient of the ASCAP Henry Mancini Fellowship. He’s scored numerous short films and in 2022, he scored the music for the animation film “Louis I. King of the Sheep” which was played in animation film festivals across the world, including the Berlin Film Festival and the Annecy Film Festival. His concert pieces have been performed internationally in France, Italy, Prague, and Iran and has collaborated with the JACK Quartet, Collailm Duo, the NYU Symphony, and guitarist Flavio Virzi. Initially self-taught as a composer, he attended the EAMA Summer Music Program in Paris where he studied counterpoint and harmony with Dr. Philip Lasser of the Juilliard School, his primary teacher. As a songwriter, he’s taken part in master classes with Roseanne Cash, Glenn Frey, and Phil Galdston. He’s also attended the highScore and CASMI composition festivals. His bachelor’s degree is in Classical Piano Performance from Rutgers University