Jonathan Gold (b. 2001) is an American composer based in New York City. Originally from New Jersey, Jonathan's musical journey began as a drummer in rock and heavy metal bands, but a transformative encounter with Morten Lauridsen's choral music led him to devote himself solely to composition in his senior year of high school.
While studying composition and choral conducting with Alla Cohen and Geneviève Leclaire at Berklee College of Music, Gold was profoundly influenced by the work of Arvo Pärt, Alan Hovhaness, and Morton Feldman. In 2021, he saw the premiers of his first piano pieces, which were especially akin to Feldman’s late avant-garde style. He is currently pursuing his M.M. in composition at the Manhattan School of Music.
While his vocal music lies in a more traditional Western liturgical style, Gold's latest instrumental works typically take the form of sonic meditations, which focus on communal improvisation based on deep listening. These works aim to turn the mind inward to engage in mindfulness and reflection upon one's present conditions, which Gold believes largely require fundamental change to achieve liberation of self and community in the context of contemporary Western society.
Orchestras, chamber ensembles, and choirs around New England and New York have performed Jonathan’s music, including at Berklee, Atlantic Music Festival, and Manhattan School of Music, as well as seasonal concerts by Crepusculum Choir and the Berklee and Boston Conservatory Chamber Singers. His works have received national and international recognition, including a second prize and special prizes for best free composition and best religious vocal music at the International Antonín Dvorák Composition Competition, a second prize at the MTNA Young Artist Composition Competition, a national semi-finalist at the American Prize Composition Competition, and the Rick Applin Award in Fugue from Berklee College of Music.