About

Ryan Fillinger (b. 2001) is an Oregon-born composer of wind ensemble, orchestral, and chamber music. His works fuse styles of the 18th, 19th, and 20th Century with modern techniques and contemporary instrumentation. Ryan currently pursues composition and wind conducting at the University of North Texas (UNT), where he has studied with Dr. Sungji Hong, Dr. Kirsten Soriano, and film composer Bruce Broughton.

Ryan has earned several awards and accolades, showcasing his increasing popularity as an emerging composer. In 2024, he was named the winner of the National Band Association NBA/Merrill Jones Composition Contest. In 2023, Ryan was given first prize in the Pennsylvania Symphonic Winds Composition Contest, and was recognized as the winner of the Austin Symphonic Band’s second annual Young Composers’ Contest. Ryan was also a finalist in the ASCAP 2022 Morton Gould Young Composer Awards. Ryan has received performances from several ensembles including the Royal Australian Air Force Band, the Pennsylvania Symphonic Winds, and ensembles at UNT including the Wind Orchestra, the Wind Ensemble, the Concert Band, and the Symphony Orchestra. Ryan also frequently collaborates with student and faculty chamber ensembles at UNT to produce exciting and dynamic new chamber works.

Ryan’s passion and dedication as a composer has garnered recognition from many, who call him “one of the most promising young composers of his generation”, and one “[whose] fresh voice will undoubtedly craft a wonderful new addition to the wind band repertoire.” (Austin Symphonic Band)