Jonathan Besser (born 1949) is a classical composer who has been involved in the New Zealand music and arts community since the 70s. Working across a range of disciplines, Besser has been the Composer in Residence for the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra and he was the Mozart Fellow at the University of Otago. He has formed several bands, including Free Radicals, Bravura and The Zestniks, playing classical music, jazz and klezmer. Besser has written original scores for the New Zealand Quartet and the Royal New Zealand Ballet’s Jean: The Ballet of Jean Batten. Jonathan is now in his seventies and lives in Mt Eden, Auckland.