Fruchtman earned his Ph.D. studying musicology at the University of California, Riverside with Byron Adams and Walter Clark.
His musicological research examines underscores of Jewish-themed films and their composers’ social and cultural world in the Golden Age of Hollywood.
Fruchtman composed scores for the first two feature films directed by Amber Benson, (best known from her role as Tara Maclay on Buffy the Vampire Slayer).
This epic piece, written expressly for the New York City Master Chorale, tells the historic tale of settlers migrating across the Oregon Trail to the Pacific Ocean.
Under the direction of Artistic Director Thea Kano, the New York City Master Chorale premiered The Journey on May 31, 2009, at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.