New England Philharmonic Selects Winner of 30th Annual Call for Scores

The New England Philharmonic (NEP) has selected "Spectre of the Spheres" by David Hertzberg, winner of their 30th annual Call for Scores. The composition will receive its Boston premiere by the NEP under the direction of Richard Pittman at their April 30, 2016 concert. The concert will also feature the world premiere of an NEP commission from David Rawkowski, Symphony No. 6, Alban Berg's Violin Concerto ("To the Memory of an Angel") featuring soloist, Danielle Maddon and Jean Sibelius' "The Oceanides." For details on NEP's full 2015-16 season, go to NEPhilharmonic.org

NEP began a Call for Scores in 1985 to showcase a contemporary classical music composition by an emerging composer. This year's Call for Scores received 130 entries from 22 countries, more than twice the number of entries received in recent past.

"David Hertzberg's 'Spectre of the Spheres' is a beautifully written work with startlingly crystalline textures. It evokes a musical world that is both familiar and mysterious. It has a grand sweep to it, and achingly beautiful melodies," said NEP's Composer-in-Residence, David Rakowski who has presided over the judging for the last four years. "The quality of submissions was the highest since I've started overseeing the NEP call for scores, the six finalists were all excellent works."

Music Director Richard Pittman was equally impressed and felt two of the finalists deserved honorable mentions, Britta Bystróm's "Der Vogel der Nacht" (Sweden) and Norberto Oldrini's "Cascata" (Italy).

Hailed as "opulently gifted" and "utterly original" David Hertzberg is swiftly garnering recognition, with his music enjoying performances at festivals in Aspen, Tanglewood, and Santa Fe, and on the stages of Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, and Carnegie Hall.

Highlights of his 2014-2015 season include premieres of new works for Young Concert Artist, the PRISM Quartet, Network for New Music, and the Curtis Orchestra, with performances at Merkin Hall and Symphony Space, as well as performances at the Kennedy Center, features on APM's "Performance Today" and Hong Kong's "Intimacy of Creativity" festival, and performances by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and the American Composers Orchestra. Other upcoming projects include new works for pianist Steven Lin and violinist In Mo Yang, both of which will premiere on the 2015-16 Concert Artists Guild series at Carnegie Hall, and a large-scale concert work for Gotham Chamber Opera, to be premiered on their 2015-16 season in New York.

David began his musical studies in violin, piano, and composition at the Colburn School and received his Bachelor and Master of Music degrees with Scholastic Distinction from the Juilliard School, where he studied with Samuel Adler. At his commencement, he was awarded the John Erskine Prize for outstanding artistic achievement throughout the course of his studies. He holds an Artist Diploma from The Curtis Institute of Music.