Solon Snider Sway Lecturer in Music Directing and Choral Programs
Solon Snider Sway is Lecturer in Music Directing and Choral Programs at Princeton, where he directs the Playhouse Choir and Playhouse Orchestra. He also works with Trenton Arts at Princeton as Director of the Trenton Youth Singers. As a conductor and ensemble director, Solon aims to facilitate creative and welcoming communities full of experimentation, growth, wonder, and imagination.
In addition to his work at Princeton, Solon is a composer/lyricist/librettist, music director, conductor, singer, actor, accompanist, arranger, and educator. Most recently, Solon composed songs for The Swallow and the Tomcat (Yale Summer Cabaret’s “Verano Season”), The Tempest (Yale School of Drama), Thank You for Trying (United Solo), and Thebes (Quinnipiac University). His latest musical, Thebes, developed with co-writers Emma H. Sway and Katie Hathaway in collaboration with director Danilo Gambini, is being developed by Rattlestick Theater in 2023. Solon’s musicals Crescent City Baby (Music/Lyrics/Libretto) and Cupidity (Music/Lyrics) were both produced at Yale University, and his original concert music has been performed by the PRISM Saxophone Quartet, The Baltimore Choral Arts Society, UMBC’S RUCKUS Ensemble, The Whiffenpoofs, The Walden School Players, The Peabody Preparatory Percussion Ensemble, and more. He has also written and arranged music for video games, television, choirs, and a cappella groups.
Recent music direction and conducting projects include The Shape of a Child (Avaloch Music Institute), The Hello Girls (Princeton University), Sondheim on Sondheim and No for An Answer (Theater 2020), The Fantasticks (Infinity Theatre Company), Matilda (Ghostlight Theater Camp), Romeo and Juliet (Saratoga Performing Arts Center), and Snow White (Ragtag Theatre).
Solon previously taught music and theater at The Dalton School After-School Program and has given lectures and full-length concerts on American music history through the Road Scholars Program. He teaches voice, piano, and musicianship lessons through his private studio and can often be found playing piano for ensembles and events around NYC. He has been an improv pianist for The Story Pirates comedy group and frequently works as an accompanist, vocalist, and arranger with The Young People’s Chorus of NYC.
Solon holds a B.A. in Music (Intensive) and Theatre Studies, with distinction in both majors, from Yale University. At Yale, he studied music theatre composition with Jeanine Tesori, Scott Frankel, and Josh Rosenblum, lyric writing with Michael Korie, and libretto writing with Marsha Norman. He also served as music director for The Duke’s Men of Yale and the world-renowned Yale Whiffenpoofs, with whom he produced the CARA-nominated album, “On the Bumpy Road.” Solon is also a huge fan of avocados!
Feel free to reach out to Solon with any questions about The Playhouse Choir, Playhouse Orchestra, or Trenton Youth Singers.
E312 Effron Music Building
609-258-0788
SolonSniderSway.com Solon in The Lewis Center