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# 5 minutes with a Tony nominee: ‘Chess’’ Brian Usifer
- URL: https://www.broadwaynews.com/5-minutes-with-a-tony-nominee-chess-brian-usifer/
- Published: 2026-05-28T01:40:39.000Z
- Updated: 2026-05-28T01:40:39.000Z
- Description: The orchestrator has earned his first Tony Award nomination.
- Author: Ruthie Fierberg
- Tags: Podcast, Brian Usifer, News, Chess, 2026 Tony Awards Spotlight, 5 minutes with a Tony nominee

Brian Usifer has been rising on the music side of Broadway for more than a decade — from associate music supervisor to music supervisor, from conductor to orchestrator. For the current revival of “Chess,” Usifer served as music supervisor and also wrote arrangements and new orchestrations. Now, Usifer is a 2026 Tony Award nominee for Best Orchestrations.

In this episode, Usifer describes what it took to preserve the original 1980s tone of the score for a contemporary audience.

![audio-thumbnail](https://storage.ghost.io/c/79/db/79db42b7-f4e9-42b6-8d81-14cee7d2a3d1/content/media/2026/05/5min_Brian_Usifer---5-27-26--3.03---PM_thumb.png)

5 minutes with a Tony nominee: Brian Usifer

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“Chess” is [nominated](https://www.broadwaynews.com/2026-tony-award-nominations-the-complete-list/) for five Tony Awards.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/79/db/79db42b7-f4e9-42b6-8d81-14cee7d2a3d1/content/images/2026/05/11_CHESS_BROADWAY_S_1530_PJZEDIT_v002_CROP2.jpg)

Members of the cast of “Chess” on Broadway, 2025 (Credit: Matthew Murphy)

The 2026 Tony Awards will take place on June 7 at Radio City Music Hall. [P!NK will host](https://www.broadwaynews.com/p-nk-will-host-the-79th-annual-tony-awards/) the ceremony, which will be broadcast live on CBS and livestreamed on Paramount+ Premium (8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT). CBS and Pluto TV will present the Tony Awards: Act One, with additional details to follow.

See the full list of nominations [here](https://www.broadwaynews.com/2026-tony-award-nominations-the-complete-list/).