David Hayes (born 15 May 1963 in

Framingham, Massachusetts Framingham () is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States. Incorporated in 1700, it is located in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Middlesex County and the MetroWest subregion of the Greater Boston ...

) is an American conductor.

Biography

Hayes studied music at the

University of Hartford The University of Hartford (UHart) is a private university in West Hartford, Connecticut, United States. Its main campus extends into neighboring Hartford and Bloomfield. It enrolled approximately 6,000 undergraduate and graduate students as ...

, Hartt School of Music, where his teachers included Richard Rusack (viola). He graduated from the Hartt School with a

Bachelor of Music A Bachelor of Music (BMus; sometimes conferred as Bachelor of Musical Arts) is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of a program of study in music. The degree may be awarded for performance, music ed ...

degree ''cum laude'' in musicology. He continued his music studies at the

Curtis Institute of Music The Curtis Institute of Music is a private conservatory in Philadelphia. It offers a performance diploma, a Bachelor of Music, Master of Music in opera, and a Professional Studies Certificate in opera. All students attend on a full scholarshi ...

, where his teachers included Otto-Werner Mueller and earned a diploma in orchestral conducting in 1989. In addition, he continued conducting studies with Charles Bruck at the Pierre Monteux School in Hancock, ME. Hayes has subsequently served as a staff conductor at the Curtis Institute. Hayes became the second music director of The Philadelphia Singers in 1992. With The Philadelphia Singers, Hayes conducted numerous Philadelphia and World Premieres including works of Jennifer Higdon, Ezra Laderman, Robert Capanna, Thomas Whitman and Morton Feldman. He held the post through the 2014-2015 season as its final music director, as The Philadelphia Singers disbanded at the close of the 2014-2015 season. During this period, Hayes was also on the conducting staff of The

Philadelphia Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra, based in Philadelphia. One of the " Big Five" American orchestras, the orchestra is based at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, where it performs its subscription concerts, n ...

from 2001 to 2011. Hayes made his Philadelphia Orchestra conducting debut in May 2003, sharing a program with

Wolfgang Sawallisch Wolfgang Sawallisch (26 August 1923 – 22 February 2013) was a German conductor and pianist. Biography Wolfgang Sawallisch was born in Munich, the son of Maria and Wilhelm Sawallisch. His father was director of the Hamburg-Bremer-Feuerversich ...

. In 2002, Hayes became director of orchestral and conducting studies at

Mannes College The New School for Music The Mannes School of Music (), originally called the David Mannes Music School and later the Mannes Music School, Mannes College of Music, the Chatham Square Music School, and Mannes College: The New School for Music, is a music conservatory in T ...

in New York City. He served as artistic advisor to The Washington Chorus during the 2007-2008 season. In July 2012, the New York Choral Society announced the appointment of Hayes as its next music director, effective with the 2012-2013 season. With the New York Choral Society, Hayes has conducted New York and world premieres, including works by

Jennifer Higdon Jennifer Elaine Higdon (born December 31, 1962) is an American composer of contemporary classical music. She has received many awards, including the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Music for her Violin Concerto and three Grammy Awards for Best Contemp ...

, James MacMillan and Joseph Vella. Hayes has served on the Board of Directors of Chorus America, the national service organization for choruses in the USA. Hayes became music director of the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia as of the 2024-2025 season.

References

External links

Official website of David Hayes

New York Choral Society page on David Hayes

The New School page on David Hayes

Chorus America page on David Hayes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hayes, David American choral conductors American male conductors (music) 1963 births Living people University of Hartford Hartt School alumni Curtis Institute of Music alumni 21st-century American conductors (music) 21st-century American male musicians