Born in Dallas Texas in 1978, Mr. Lanier began studying violin at the age of four and has been performing and composing ever since. Lanier holds an M.A. in Composition and Film Scoring from NYU and a B.M. in Violin Performance from Mannes College of Music. Lanier has written music for 18 feature films, television (HBO, FOX, CBS, NBC, and LifeTime), and theatrical productions (The Guys, with Sigourney Weaver & Bill Murray). Lanier wrote original music for Jon M. Chu's groundbreaking online series, The LXD (The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers) and directed a performance of the group at the 2010 TED Conference. Lanier's unique cinematic dance music has been featured on such shows as So You Think You Can Dance, Live To Dance, Conan, The Ellen Degeneres Show, and opened the Glee and So You Think You Can Dance live tours in 2010. In addition to composing, conducting, and orchestrating, Lanier has performed on the Tonight Show with Josh Groban, and with artists such as Kanye West, Stevie Wonder, Isaac Hayes, John Williams, Julie Andrews, Take 6, Michael Buble, and Smokey Robinson.