Charley Raiff
Musicals, scores, records — and whoever else is buying.
About
I'm a composer, songwriter, and producer in New York. I write musicals, score for film and TV, and run Tuner — my label and studio in Williamsburg, where I make records with artists, score for brands and directors, and (once in a while) get hired to write the music for a nicotine gum commercial.
My path here has been anything but conventional. Piano as a kid, conducting along to Leonard Bernstein in my parents' living room before I really knew how to play. Months-long apprenticeships with Stew (Passing Strange, The Total Bent) and Nick Littlemore (Empire of the Sun, Pnau). Piano lessons from Taylor Eigsti, George Cables, and Jason Moran. A Bachelor's from The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, after a transfer from Berklee. The rest I picked up making records and playing shows — which, honestly, has always been the part that stuck.
Work
Book, music, and lyrics by me. Directed by Daniel Goldstein. A satire about the 1% and a love letter to Manhattan. luxuryproblemsmusical.com
An evocative work following a young person in a break from reality. Initial versions recorded with Henry Hey (Lazarus).
Records with artists, scoring for brands and directors, and whatever oddity wanders into the inbox.
Selected Credits
Off-Broadway: Stew's The Total Bent at The Public Theater. Writing and producing alongside Jon Batiste, Henry Hey, Latasha, and Akinyemi. Tuner clients include Sony/ATV, Billboard, FCB Health, Hogarth, Grey, GSK, Coca-Cola, S. Pellegrino, and OpenSea. Piano credits include MOMA, The Met, and — once — the Met Gala.
Snapshot
A quick glance at some of me in action.
The Rabbis
I live with Rabbi Bernie Bernstein and Rabbi Floofenberg. They run the studio more than I do.
