Short Bio
Musician Daniel Nelson is an internationally performed composer, arranger, orchestrator, and interpretor of contemporary music.
Notable performances of his music include CBDNA, Network for New Music, American Composers Forum Philadelphia, Philadelphia Iron Composer, FMA Diamond Screen Film Festival, and the New Frame International Film Festival. He has written numerous works for large ensembles, choral ensembles, chamber and solo performers, youth pedogogical ensembles, as well as electronic media. He was awarded the American Composers Forum Philadelphia Chapter Film Composers Grant and his music has been heard in dozens of films, commercials, and video games.
A dedicated educator, Nelson has led master classes in his music at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, the University of Minnesota, and Temple University, as well as clinics for primary school musicians. He has taught Music Theory, Musicianship, and Composition at the University of Pennsylvania, where he earned a Ph.D. in Music Composition. He also earned a BA in Music from Cornell University. His primary teachers include Anna Weesner, Jay Reise, James Primosch, Steven Stucky and Roberto Sierra.
Nelson is also an active organist, improviser, and performer. He currently holds the position of Director of Music at the Church of St. John the Evangelist in Blackwood, NJ.