David Avshalomov is a distinguished third-generation classical composer and orchestral conductor, and an accomplished vocalist. He was born in New York City in 1946, grew up in Oregon, and since 1978 has lived in Santa Monica, California. He represents a musical lineage whose story stretches from the Caucasus to Siberia, through China, to the US.
Awards include:
- AMERICAN PRIZE for Orchestral Composition 2012
- Winner, Special Citation for Unique Artistic Achievement/Distinctive Merit
- ACDA Silver Platter Award 2012 for Choral Repertoire of Outstanding Quality
A composer grounded in the traditions of Western classical music, David Avshalomov creates his works in an accessible modern romantic, neo-tonal style that balances a rich lyric gift with a characteristic rhythmic vitality and pungent harmonies. The forms he crafts are conservative and developmental, his compositional voice distinctive. The influences on his style include the great 20th-century European and American tonal composers, and both his father Jacob and his paternal grandfather, Aaron Avshalomoff.
He has composed works for solo voice, choruses, orchestra, band, chamber ensembles, and solo instruments, in forms ranging in scale from songs and incidental pieces to full-length oratorio. Recently he has been writing a lot of choral music. Both his programmatic instrumental works and his vocal works focus increasingly on issues of social justice, and our fundamental connection to nature–and wilderness.
He has had commissions from such ensembles as the San Jose Chamber Orchestra, Mission Chamber Orchestra, Musica Bella Orchestra of NY, Odyssea Chorus of Lisbon, Los Angeles Flute Orchestra, LA Clarinet Orchestra, Westwood United Methodist Church (LA), Anglican Chorale of Southern California, and Camerata Singers of Long Beach. He has also been Resident Composer with the Anglican Chorale, Torrance Civic Chorale, and Cantori Domino.
His compositions have been performed professionally across the U.S. and in Europe and Russia, and are recorded on the Albany and Naxos labels. He has earned grants from Meet the Composer, the American Music Center, the American Composer’s Forum, and the Durfee Foundation. His works have won prizes at the Aspen Festival, the Korg Competition, the Santa Monica Debut Concert series, a Special Citation from the American Prize for Orchestral Composition, and an ACDA Silver Platter Award for Outstanding Choral Repertoire.
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