Christopher Culpo is an American-French composer and pianist whose artistic vision spans the realms of contemporary jazz, contemporary classical music, and free improvisation. With degrees in composition from Boston University and The Juilliard School, Culpo has honed his craft under the guidance of luminaries such as Milton Babbitt, David del Tredici and Charles Banacos. His compositions traverse diverse genres, from chamber and symphonic works to vocal and operatic pieces, as well as scores for dance, theater, and silent films. 

Following his studies at Juilliard Mr. Culpo was the personal assistant to Aaron Copland and an active Teaching Artist for the Lincoln Center Institute. Since receiving a Fulbright scholarship to work with Tristan Murail in Paris in 1991, Mr. Culpo has lived and worked in Europe. His performing career has taken him on stages as diverse as the Cluny Jazz Festival, Jazz at Domergue, Rhino Jazz (France), Blossoms Festival (Belgium), The Old Town House, Athol Fugard Festival in Nieu Bethesda and the Forge (South Africa), Club Borgo, « Sestri Jazz Jazz La Spezia (Italy), the Radar Festival and EuroJazz  (Mexico), the Adelaide Cabaret Festival and the Sydney Opera House (Australia), or the Festival Christchurch (New Zealand).

As a performer Christopher Culpo has released many recordings including: Portrait in Black & White with saxophonist Jean Charles Richard, Love & Bananas Are Here with the Culpo–Richard- Herbert Trio and two albums with the Fresh Frozen Trio which features clarinetist – saxophonist Achille Succi and tuba player Glauco Benedetti. In duo with Succi he has released Live in Cremona and two volumes of improvisations, The Golden Hand Sessions Volumes 1 and 2. Also in duo with Irish saxophonist Catherine Sikora he has released The Spectral Life of Things and Mimesis. His  composition After Midnight, Before Dawn was praised by The Washington Post as « a strikingly vivid work that explores the elusive worlds of sleeping and dreaming, to hallucinogenic effect ». In February 2012 Culpo was awarded the Clefworks composition prize and his Of Ground, or Air, or Ought- was premiered by the ETHEL quartet in Montgomery, Alabama. In 2013 Radio France commissioned Culpo to compose Murmurations for the National Orchestra of France. And in 2019 he was awarded second prize in the Uuno Klami Composition Competition for Mundus Imaginalis, for piano and string orchestra.

Culpo’s music is published by Les Editions Le Chant du Monde and Editions Musicales Contemporain.