Award-winning composer and guitarist James Lentini is a recipient of the Segovia International Composition Prize, the McHugh Composition Prize, and the Bluffton University Choral Competition (first prize), in addition to awards from Meet the Composer and the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP). A recording of his chamber works entitled "Orchestra Hall Suite" appears on the Naxos label's American Classics Series, and his music also appears on the Navona, Azica, Capstone, and CRS recording labels. A recording of his works for large ensembles, "Through Time and Place," was named one of the Best Classical Recordings of 2020 by the Chicago Tribune. His composition entitled "The Four Seasons" for classical guitar was published by Mel Bay in their Contemporary Anthology of Solo Guitar Music for Five Fingers of the Right Hand. Lentini’s works have been performed by distinguished solo artists such as guitarist William Kanengiser and recorded by ensembles that include the Krakow Philharmonic Orchestra, Bohuslav Martinů Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra. Members of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra have regularly performed his works, and commissions include those for the Hanson Institute for American Music, the Plymouth Symphony, and the Rawlins Piano Trio. He has participated as a juror in the Segovia International Guitar Competition in La Herradura, Spain, and he has been a Visiting Artist at the American Academy in Rome. With a long and distinguished career in higher education, Dr. Lentini was named as the 7th President of Molloy College in Rockville Centre NY in 2020. He previously served as Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost at Oakland University, Dean of the College of Creative Arts at Miami University, founding dean of the School of Art, Media, and Music at The College of New Jersey, and Professor of Music at Wayne State University. In 2020, Dr. Lentini became the first recipient of the President's Medal of Excellence from Oakland University.
