Steve Danyew, Composer

Steve Danyew’s music has been hailed as “startlingly beautiful” and
“undeniably well crafted and communicative” by the Miami Herald,
and has been praised as possessing “sensitivity, skill and
tremendous sophistication” by the Kansas City Independent.

Danyew is the recipient of numerous national and international
awards, including the coveted BMI Student Composer Award, 1st
prize in the 2008 Ithaca Choral Composition Competition, Winner of
the 2009 Octarium Choral Prize, Winner of the 2009 Delaware
Valley Chorale Award, Winner of the 2010 Brighton Bands Fanfare
Competition, 3rd prize in the 2010 Wegmans/Penfield Wind
Ensemble Composition Contest, Runner-up in the 2009 Sacra
Profana Competition, Regional Winner in the 2008 SCI/ASCAP
National Student Composers Competition, 2nd prize in the 2006
APSU National Young Composers Competition, and four time finalist
in the ASCAP Morton Gould Awards.

In 2008, Danyew’s choral work “Goodnight, Goodnight” was
awarded 1st prize in the prestigious Ithaca Choral Composition
Competition, competing against over 700 entries worldwide. Most
recently, Danyew's choral work "On Green Mountains" was named
the winner in the 2009 Octarium Composition Competition, and the
winner of the 2009 Delaware Valley Chorale Composition
Competition. Octarium recently released "On Green Mountains" in
their CD recording entitled "Modern Masters," which also features
the works of Morten Lauridsen, Eric Whitacre, and more.

After a CD release performance, the Kansas City Independent wrote: "The piece that stood out most on this program
was the dazzling On Green Mountains by Steve Danyew...a seven-minute gem of sensitivity, skill and tremendous
sophistication, fully worthy to appear on a program of the best living American choral composers."

Steve received a B.M. cum laude, Pi Kappa Lambda from the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami and holds
an M.M. and Certificate in Arts Leadership from the Eastman School of Music. Additionally, Danyew has served as a
Composer Fellow at the Yale Summer Music School with Martin Bresnick, and as a Composer Fellow at the Composers
Conference in Wellesley, MA with Mario Davidovsky. After serving as a Composer Fellow, Danyew was unanimously
selected by the Amateur Musicians' Committee at the Composers Conference to serve as the commissioned composer
for the following year. Danyew has presented lectures and presentations on his music at the Eastman School of Music,
Clarke University, and at venues in Miami (FL), Coral Gables (FL), West Palm Beach (FL), Kansas City (KS), and
Lawrence (KS).

As a saxophonist, Danyew has garnered numerous awards and prizes spanning several genres. After a performance of
his own work, the South Florida Sun Sentinel proclaimed him a "saxophone virtuoso par excellence, making the
instrument sing as well as shout." He has studied saxophone with Chien-Kwan Lin, Dale Underwood, Angela Space,
Cindy Cripps, Ed Xiques, and jazz greats Vinnie Dean and Tony LaVorgna.

Danyew co-founded and serves as Executive Director and Composer-in-Residence of the Miami-based chamber
ensemble Project Copernicus. The ensemble, focused on bold new presentations of a wide range of classical repertoire,
has been hailed as “The future of classical music” by the Palm Beach Post.

Danyew also serves as an Editor of the orchestral music site Polyphonic.org, where he manages and edits the content
for the newly established “Polyphonic On Campus” section – a career resource section for students and young
professionals.

To hear audio samples of recent compositions, and to purchase sheet music, click here.

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