James A. Hirt currently teaches in the Conservatory of Music at Baldwin-Wallace College. His compositions are published by C.Alan Publications and Jeffers Handbell Supply. Hirt's music has been performed by The Cleveland Orchestra, The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, The Florida Orchestra, The Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra, The Cincinnati Youth Symphony Orchestra, The St. Louis Symphony Youth Orchestra, The DePauw Symphony Orchestra, and so on. His orchestral works have been broadcast on over 500 times in the United States, Europe, Japan, and Canada. The composer has received many commissions and won a number of national and local composition competitions, including: two prestigious A.S.C.A.P. awards, Ohio Arts Council Individual Artists Fellowships, The Cincinnati Symphony’s Bicentennial Young Composers Competition, The American Choral Directors Composition Competition, the Margaret Fairbanks Jory Copying Assistance Grant, a University of Cincinnati Research Fellowship, the Ohio Federation of Music Clubs Competition, the WGUC 20th Anniversary Competition, and many A.S.C.A.P. Standard Grants. James received a Bachelor of Music Degree from Capital University, as well as Masters and Doctorate Degrees from the College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati. He has studied music composition with Jonathan Kramer, Norman Dinerstein, and Allen Sapp. He has taught a wide variety of courses at the University of Cincinnati, ranging from Music Theory, Music Composition, and Counterpoint, to classes on 20th Century Music, and the weekly performances of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra.