"Absolutely incredible. ...like standing on the shoulders of giants and then taking the next step."

     ~Paul Cravens, review of Symphony in B-Flat Minor, Movement II

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“The counterpoint is handled with professional ease, and the array of orchestral gestures is, frankly, stunning... impressive and masterfully done.”

     ~Albert Mendoza, Alfred Music ​

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“An ambitious and satisfying creation! I feel like I just enjoyed a delicious feast. So much imagination!"

     ~Wynn-Anne Rossi, composer, with over 100 publications

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"...extremely adept at moving through harmonic landscapes.”

     ~Deanna Walker, composer, MTNA adjudicator

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Winston F. Schneider began piano lessons at a young age, or as he says, "twenty-nine days after my fifth birthday." Early on, he was able to play pieces in any key, in different styles, sometimes simultaneously playing each hand in a different key with his eyes closed. 

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Schneider soon began writing down musical ideas on paper as they would "pop in his head," making the leap from his first piano lesson to creating music of his own seemingly overnight. A rare ability of Absolute Pitch was discovered. The language of music came as naturally to him as colors and shapes. Schneider began composing at age five. He began music theory and counterpoint at the university level at age eight. 

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“It’s like being a muse. You give him possibilities and he does his magic, which is amazing for a kid his age,” says Dr. Kenneth Meints in the Omaha World Herald (October, 2016). 

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Fast forward a few years, and Schneider's received considerable acclaim for his musical works, and is the recipient of over thirty-five composition awards, including national and international awards. He's written over 100 pieces. 

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“Congratulations on your bold ideas and I hope you keep them coming,” announced Shawn Jaeger, composer, as he introduced the premiere of Schneider's first large scale orchestra work, “Insect Suite,” at the MATA Jr. Festival in New York in November, 2018.  At age 10, Schneider was one of six pre-college composers selected internationally to compose a new piece for MATA Jr. Festival in New York, which the New Yorker calls “the most exciting showcase for outstanding young composers from around the world.” Face the Music, the esteemed New York teen music ensemble, performed this 11-minute work. A few months later, he received his first request from a professional orchestra, the Grammy-nominated Omaha Symphony, to perform this work.  

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The same year, Schneider was also NAfME's Composition Competition national first place winner, and string quartet “Scherzo of the Feather Stars” was premiered in Dallas, Texas. 

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At age 11, he was featured on PBS’s News Hour’s "Arts Canvas," in a story, "Bugs and books become inspiration for this 11-year-old composer." He was featured in two TV stories produced by Nebraska Public Media (Nebraska's NPR and PBS stations), "What If..." a series about innovators and creativity, and "Winston, Kid Composer," which won a "Heartland Emmy." 

 

At age 12, the world shut down for Covid. During this time, he spent almost all of his time composing, and wrote three symphonies and several chamber pieces. Also at 12, he was the youngest student ever to be accepted in the Curtis Institute of Music’s esteemed Summerfest composition program. The same year, Schneider was one of a few non-New York residents selected to be a part of the New York Youth Symphony Composing Program and Conducting Program during their virtual year. The New York Youth Symphony premiered and recorded Schneider’s “Battle of Five Armies,” for wind ensemble, inspired by J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Hobbit.” He was also selected for “ComposerLab Flute: Young American Composers” for Dolce Suono Ensemble for composers under 30, and “Trying to Catch a Cloudless Sulphur” was premiered by virtuosic flutist Mimi Stillman. Additionally, a commissioned chamber piece, “The Summer of COVID-19 (from the Perspective of a 17-year-old Girl)” was premiered and recorded by the Omaha Symphony. 

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At age 13, Schneider received a prestigious American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) Morton Gould Young Composer Awards Honorable Mention, a competition for composers up to 30 years of age, with over 500 applicants each year. “Expiculating Quintet” earned him this recognition.

 

At age 14, Schneider won the national MTNA Junior Composition Competition. His work, “Salt Creek Tiger Beetle,” a string quintet, is inspired by the endangered insect which is one of the rarest insects in the world, and only found in Nebraska.  Additionally, Schneider won the Young Composers Contest for NFMC, with his piece “Symphony in B-flat Minor, ‘Revelation.’” He was invited to be on NPR’s From the Top.

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Also at 14, in September of 2022, Schneider made his Masterworks debut with the Omaha Symphony, premiering his orchestral composition Anniversary Overture. The work was commissioned by classical music station KVNO to celebrate its 50th anniversary.​

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In October 2022, his composition Harmonious Projection was premiered at the Holland Center, by Omaha Symphony musicians. This work was commissioned in celebration of Project Harmony's 25th anniversary and its mission to end child abuse. ​

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Throughout 2023 and 2024, Schneider won the Senior Level of MTNA's national composition competition with a nine-instrument piece, "Shortchanged Scherzo: a Fleeced Fandango;" "Salt Creek Tiger Beetle Quintet" won Young Composer Competition and was performed by Chamber Project Saint Louis in St. Louis; "Salt Creek Tiger Beetle Quintet" won Sempre Musick Composition Competition and was performed by Sempre Musick Orchestra in Boston. "Salt Creek Tiger Beetle Quintet" won the composition competition for Global Musical Arts. 

 

Schneider was a guest on the Earth Day Special episode of NPR's From the Top in 2024.  From the Top is "the most popular one-hour weekly syndicated classical program on public radio.”

 

Schneider also received a Davidson Fellows Scholarship. Recognized by Forbes as "one of the nation's most prestigious undergraduate scholarships," Schneider was the only recipient in 2024 in the field of music.

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Schneider and his piano duet partner, Matvey Moisseyev, won the MTNA regional piano duet competition, performing Schneider's "Swap" alongside other repertoire. They will compete for the national title in 2025.

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2025 will also include a premiere of "Shortchanged Scherzo: a Fleeced Fandango" for orchestra in Boston, following its win in Sempre Musick's orchestra composition competition. Additionally, a new orchestral work will be premiered by Orchestra Omaha, and his choral composition "Snow-Flakes" will be premiered in the spring in New York City by the New York Virtuoso Singers.

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Schneider has written works that have been performed across the country, including by the Grammy-nominated Omaha Symphony, the Grammy-Award winning New York Youth Symphony, Steamboat Symphony Orchestra, Face the Music (NYC’s premiere youth ensemble), Ars Futura (Cleveland based contemporary music ensemble), Chamber Project Saint Louis, Sempre Musick Orchestra (Boston), Orchestra Omaha, SoundWaves String Orchestra, Omaha Area Youth Orchestra, Rocky Mountain Summer Conservatory ensemble, numerous string quartets and ensembles, as well as solo performances on a variety of different instruments, including by Mimi Stillman, virtuosic flutist.

 

His orchestra works have been conducted by Maestros Ernest Richardson, Ankush Kumar Bahl, Na'Zir McFadden, David Bloom, and Aviva Segall. 

 

Schneider's received commissions from notable organizations, including the Omaha Symphony, the Omaha Conservatory of Music, the Rocky Mountain Summer Conservatory, KVNO classical music station and Project Harmony.

 

Schneider studies composition with Dr. Ken Meints and piano with Anne Madison at the Omaha Conservatory of Music. He studies cello with Micah Fusselman. He's a four-time MTNA State Piano Performance winner. In January of 2024, Schneider was named the "2023 Outstanding Performer of the Year" for his piano performance of Prokofiev's Suggestion Diabolique by Global Musical Arts.​

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With a firm belief that all kids should have access to music education, Schneider co-founded Music Marathon for Music Education with his sister Giselle, a fund-raising event that raises money for programs that provide music education to kids at little to no cost to families. The first ever MM4ME was held on April 14, 2024, and it raised over $3800 for the String Sprouts program. The 2025 event will be March 29. Schneider also won the Lowell Mason House national competition for Music Education Advocacy, with a video submission about the importance of a musical education. Schneider continues to perform and speak as an advocate for music education access for all kids.  ​​

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