David Alan Miller (born 1961) is a multi-Grammy Award-winning American

symphony orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...

conductor, and since 1992, music director of the Albany Symphony Orchestra. Miller served as assistant and associate conductor of the

Los Angeles Philharmonic The Los Angeles Philharmonic (LA Phil) is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. The orchestra holds a regular concert season from October until June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall and a summer season at the Hollywood Bowl from ...

from 1987–92 and music director of the

New York Youth Symphony The New York Youth Symphony (NYYS), founded in 1963, is a music organization for the youth in New York City, widely reputed to be one of the best of its kind in the nation and world. Its programs include its flagship Orchestra, Chamber Music, J ...

from 1982-88. He is currently also Artistic Advisor to both the Sarasota Orchestra and to

The Little Orchestra Society :''Not to be confused by Leslie Jones (conductor)#The Little Orchestra of London, The Little Orchestra of London'' The Little Orchestra Society is an American orchestra based at 630 9th Avenue, Suite 807 in New York City. It was founded in 1947 b ...

in New York City.

Early career and education

Miller was raised in the

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

area. He graduated with a bachelor's degree from the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

. He then earned a master's degree in orchestral conducting from

The Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...

. Miller was appointed Assistant Conductor of the

in 1981 and then ascended to the music directorship the following year while he was still a student at Juilliard. He was also a two-term conducting fellow and, later, Associate Director at the Los Angeles Philharmonic Institute. In 1987, he was appointed Assistant Conductor of the

by Music Director

André Previn André George Previn (; born Andreas Ludwig Priwin; April 6, 1929 – February 28, 2019) was a German-American pianist, composer, and conductor. His career had three major genres: Hollywood films, jazz, and classical music. In each he achieved ...

; he was promoted to Associate Conductor in 1990 and held that position for two years. During his tenure with the orchestra, he conducted subscription concerts, an acclaimed family concert series, "Green Umbrella" New Music Group concerts and community concerts, as well as regular programs at the

Hollywood Bowl The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre and Urban park, public park in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in the United States by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018 and was listed on ...

. In the fall of 1987, Miller replaced Previn on only 36-hours notice during a week of regular Philharmonic subscription concerts, earning glowing reviews.

Albany Symphony Orchestra

Miller has been music director and conductor of the Albany Symphony since 1992.Albany Symphony Orchestra official web site About web page
Accessed January 4, 2008. Under his leadership, the Albany Symphony has frequently premiered and performed significant works by living American composers.
Accessed January 4, 2008. During his tenure, the orchestra has become one of the busiest recording orchestras in the US, and has released more than 30 discs, mainly featuring new or recent American music. He instituted a major annual American Music Festival in 1998, with multiple events featuring new works over five days each May. In the summer of 2017, the orchestra celebrated the bicentennial of the Erie Canal with a one-of-a-kind boat and barge trip, collaborating with community performing groups on seven major world premiere compositions on consecutive nights in communities along the Canal. The trip garnered national attention, including an article in ''The New York Times''. In 2019, the orchestra's American Music Festival, "Sing Out, NY," celebrated New York State's major role in social justice movements, focused specifically on the 100th anniversary of the 19th amendment and the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots. In recognition of the orchestra's commitment to contemporary music and innovative programming, Miller and the Albany Symphony were twice invited to appear at "Spring For Music," an annual festival of America's most creative orchestras at New York City's Carnegie Hall. The orchestra was the only ensemble to perform more than once at this festival. Miller and the orchestra also appeared at "SHIFT: A Festival of American Orchestras" at Washington D.C.'s Kennedy Center in 2018. Miller established a family concert series shortly after his arrival at the Albany Symphony in 1992, and created a "Capital Heritage" commissioning series, for which the orchestra commissions and performs works inspired by New York Capital Region history. The works are performed "on location," in or at the locations that inspired them. "Capital Heritage" presentations have included performances inspired by Tiffany windows throughout the region, a day in the State Capital and a day at the Saratoga battlefield.

Dogs of Desire

Formed by Miller in 1994, Dogs of Desire is an eighteen-member contemporary music ensemble composed of principal members of the Albany Symphony and two female vocalists. The ensemble has commissioned over 150 new works from emerging American composers and gained a national reputation among young composers as a proving ground for emerging talent. Composers who have been commissioned by the Dogs of Desire include:

Derek Bermel Derek Bermel (born 1967, in New York City) is an American composer, clarinetist and conducting, conductor whose music blends various facets of world music, funk and jazz with largely classical performing forces and musical vocabulary. He is the ...

, Arthur Bloom, Dorothy Chang, Jacob Cooper, Michael Daugherty, Kenneth Eberhard, Reena Esmail, Ted Hearne, David Lang, Loren Loiacono, Todd Levin, David Mallamud, Huang Ruo, Annika Socolofsky,

Michael Torke Michael Torke (; born September 22, 1961) is an American composer who writes music influenced by jazz and minimalism. Torke was born in Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he attended Wilson Elementary School, graduated from Wauwatosa East High ...

and George Tsontakis. The Dogs and Miller have released CDs of works by Michael Daugherty on Argo and

NAXOS Naxos (; , ) is a Greek island belonging to the Cyclades island group. It is the largest island in the group. It was an important centre during the Bronze Age Cycladic Culture and in the Ancient Greek Archaic Period. The island is famous as ...

, and by David Mallamud on Broadway Records.

Guest conducting

Frequently in demand as a guest conductor, Miller has worked with most of America's major orchestras, including the orchestras of Baltimore, Buffalo, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, Minnesota, Nashville, New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and San Francisco, as well as the New World Symphony, the

Boston Pops The Boston Pops is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts, specializing in light classical and popular music. The orchestra's current music director is Keith Lockhart. Founded in 1885 as an offshoot of the Boston Symphony Orc ...

and the

New York City Ballet New York City Ballet (NYCB) is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company. Léon Barzin was the company's fir ...

. He has also returned to the

on occasion to conduct them during their summer season at the

. Miller conducted the "Casual Classics" series for eight seasons with the

Minnesota Orchestra The Minnesota Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Founded originally as the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra in 1903, the Minnesota Orchestra plays most of its concerts at Minneapolis's Orchestra Hall. History Th ...

. Additionally, Miller has appeared frequently throughout Europe, Australia and the Far East as a guest conductor.. Accessed 17 March 2015. Miller made his international debut with the RAI Orchestra in Turin, Italy, in the 1999-2000 season. He has also conducted major European orchestras in Berlin, Barcelona, Lisbon, London Prague, Dresden, Hanover, Halle and Mainz. He has appeared with the Adelaide Symphony, Melbourne Symphony Hong Kong Philharmonic, Singapore Symphony, National Orchestra of Taiwan, and the Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra; led the Australian Youth Orchestra on its European tour; and conducted the Asian Youth Orchestra on a major tour of the Far East that included concerts in Japan, Korea, Hong Kong and Singapore. In Canada, he has conducted the National Arts Center Orchestra and the Edmonton Symphony.

Awards

Miller's recordings have been nominated for a total of six Grammy awards, winning two Grammys, and he has been personally nominated for a total of five. He has also won a number of awards for his innovative programming and his commitment to performing and premiering modern and contemporary American works. In 1999, Miller won ASCAP's first-ever Leonard Bernstein Award for Outstanding Educational Programming, and in 2001, he won the

ASCAP The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) () is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that collectively licenses the public performance rights of its members' musical works to venues, broadc ...

Morton Gould Award for Innovative Programming. In 2003, he received

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

's Ditson Conductor's Award. This award is "the oldest award honoring conductors for their commitment to American music, (and) was established in 1945 by the Alice M. Ditson Fund at Columbia. Past recipients include

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; born Louis Bernstein; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was th ...

, Eugene Ormandy, JoAnn Falletta,

Michael Tilson Thomas Michael Tilson Thomas (born December 21, 1944) is an American conductor, pianist, and composer. He is Artistic Director Laureate of the New World Symphony, an American orchestral academy in Miami Beach, Florida, Music Director Laureate of the S ...

and James DePreist." In 2013, Miller won the John R. Edwards award for the nation's strongest commitment to new American music. Miller received a Grammy Award in January, 2014 along with percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie for their recording of John Corigliano's ''Conjurer'' with the Albany Symphony in the Grammy Award for Best Classical Instrumental Solo category. Miller was nominated for a Grammy Award in

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

along with soprano Talise Trevigne for their recording of Christopher Rouse's '' Kabir Padavali'' with the Albany Symphony in the Grammy Award for Best Classical Vocal Performance category. Miller was also nominated for a Grammy Award in

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

for his ''Harbison, Ruggles & Stucky: Orchestral Works'' disc recorded with the National Orchestral Institute Philharmonic in the Grammy Award for Best Orchestral Performance category. He was nominated for a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

along with violinist Tessa Lark for their recording of

's ''Sky, Concerto for Violin'' with the Albany Symphony in the Grammy Award for Best Classical Instrumental Solo category. Miller jointly won a

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

along with violist Richard O'Neill for their recording of Christopher Theofanidis's ''Concerto For Viola And Chamber Orchestra'' with the Albany Symphony in the Grammy Award for Best Classical Instrumental Solo category.

Recordings

Miller has led many commercial recordings with the Albany Symphony and other ensembles. His extensive discography includes recordings of the works of Todd Levin with the

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's orchestras, symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's ...

for

Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family of ...

, music by Michael Daugherty, Kamran Ince, and

for London/Decca, and of John Corigliano, Christopher Rouse, Michael Daugherty, and Luis Tinoco for

Naxos Naxos (; , ) is a Greek island belonging to the Cyclades island group. It is the largest island in the group. It was an important centre during the Bronze Age Cycladic Culture and in the Ancient Greek Archaic Period. The island is famous as ...

. His recordings with the Albany Symphony include discs devoted to the music of John Harbison, Michael Torke, Roy Harris, Morton Gould, Don Gillis, Peter Mennin, and Vincent Persichetti on the Albany Records label. Miller's recordings with other ensembles include his

Harmonia Mundi Harmonia Mundi is a record label that specializes in classical music, jazz, and world music (on the World Village label). It was founded in France in 1958 and is now a subsidiary of PIAS Entertainment Group, which is itself owned by Universal M ...

disc of Mel Powell's Pulitzer-Prize winning "Duplicates" with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, as well as projects with the Gulbenkian Orchestra of Lisbon and the National Orchestral Institute Philharmonic.

References

External links

Albany Symphony Orchestra's homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, David Alan 1961 births American male conductors (music) Living people Musicians from Albany, New York Musicians from Los Angeles Classical musicians from California Classical musicians from New York (state) Grammy Award winners 21st-century American conductors (music) 21st-century American male musicians