The Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) has named Bret Bohman as the 2019 MTNA Distinguished Composer of Year.

Bohman (pictured) teaches courses in electronic music composition and music theory at the University of Missouri. He is a co-founder of the new music group Khemia Ensemble, and also records original electronic music under the name Bels Lontano. Bohman previously taught at the University of Michigan, where he received his doctorate.

The MTNA award is given to the composer of the most significant work from among all compositions commissioned during the year by the organization’s state affiliates, and represents “a significant, noteworthy recognition by your peers of your extraordinary skills as a composer.”

Bohman and his composition “Tides,” for clarinet and electronics, were selected by a panel of independent judges from among 30 works created in 2019. The judges for the year were Dr. Benjamin Krause, an Emmy nominated composer and winner of the 2018 MTNA Distinguished Composer of Year; Dr. Andrew Nishikawa, instructor at the Art Institutes in Houston, TX; and Cody Criswell, composer, percussionist and guitarist.

The award comes with a $5,000 cash prize and a performance of the winning work, which will feature Mizzou’s post-doctoral fellow Yoshiaki Onishi as the clarinet soloist, during the 2020 MTNA National Conference, to be held March 21 – 25 in Chicago, IL.