August 18-24, 2025 | Freed Fellow at KlezKanada
June 27-July 22, 2025 | Artist-in-Residence at Byrdcliffe Artist Guild
June 21, 2025 | A Besere Velt Concert at First Parish Church, Cambridge, MA
Boston Workers Circle's ABV Chorus, led by Musical Director David Derek, will be joined by musical guest, the Boston-based klezmer band, Levyosn to present Building Bridges Through Solidarity, a concert that is sure to inspire and sustain our ongoing work for collective freedom. In-person and livestream tickets available here.
June 11, 2025 | Class Series at Lehrhaus, Somerville
Yiddish Life through Music: Love, Tragedy, Humor, and Joy in Yiddish Folk Song! I will return to teach at Lehrhaus as a part of their series on Yiddish Music. More info here.
May 4, 2025 | A Besere Velt in Brookline, MA
I will conduct ABV at Temple Beth Zion at 7:00pm.
April 9, 2025 | Presentation with The Workers Circle (virtual)
I have been invited to present a lecture in Yiddish on my music and work as Yiddishist in an Intermediate-Advanced Yiddish course as a part of The Workers Circle, New York. More info here.
March 16, 2025 | Duettino for violin and cello in Martha's Vineyard, MA
Music Street presents Duettino on their concert at the West Tisbury Library. More info soon.
March 3, 2025 | Class at Lehrhaus, Somerville, MA
I will be teaching a class called "Yiddish Folksong: Living Passions from a Jewish Past". More info here.
February 23, 2025 | Duettino for violin and cello in Lincoln, MA
Music Street presents the premier of my two-movement work for violin and cello at Bernis Hall in Lincoln, MA. More info here.
December 21-26, 2024 | Faculty at Yiddish New York
Returning as faculty of Yiddish New York, leading the choral program. More info here.
November 8-17, 2024 | Partimento Conference in Vienna
I am attending “Partimento — Realising its Potential” and sharing my course materials with colleagues. I will also be able to attend Klezmore Festival Vienna while there.
October 26, 2024 | Di Fayerdike Lib - Passionate Love at MIT
Funded by the MIT CAST Fay Chandler Creativity Grant, I will present an evening of my music, featuring the premiere of my Viola Partita and String Quartet No. 3, String Quartet No. 4 "Kaddish", as well as arrangements of Yiddish Folksong sung by me. More info here.
September 14, 2024 | String Quartet No. 4 in San Francisco (two performances)
Program: amplifying the Jewish experience on Angel Island Featuring Derek David: String Quartet no.4, “Kaddish”, with additional music by Ljova & Larry Polansky (11:30am & 1:30pm). More info here.
June 8-11, 2024 | Composition Faculty at Sunset ChamberFest
Derek will work with students in Sunset ChamberFest’s 2024 Young Composers Workshop in Los Angeles, CA. More info here.
May 15, 2024 | A Besere Velt at Fenway
Derek conducts A Besere Velt in a performance of the National Anthem for Jewish Heritage Night at Fenway. More info here.
May 8, 2024 | Conducting A Besere Velt Concert
Derek conducts ABV at the Cambridge Holocaust Memorial.
May 7, 2024 | Lecturer (virtual) at Sorbonne Université
Derek is an invited lecturer at Sorbonne Université (Paris, France), presenting “My life and the Yiddish Musical World: Contemporary Concert Music, Folk Song, and the Yiddish Choral Tradition”.
May 6, 2024 | Conducting A Besere Velt Concert
Derek conducts ABV at the Auschwitz Exhibit at The Castle at Park Plaza.
May 4, 2024 | A Besere Velt Concert
Derek conducts Mayday! May Day! a program of songs of hope in times of struggle, featuring Judy Bressler and Hankus Netsky. More info here.
March 23, 2024 | New Gallery Concert Series in Cambridge, MA
New Gallery Concert Series presents my Duet for Violin and Viola at Longy School of Music. More info here.
December 23-28, 2023 | Conducting Yiddish New York chorus
Invited faculty for Yiddish New York, directing and arranging works for the festival's chorus. More info here.
September 23, 2023 | ‘A Besere Velt’ Concert with Frank London
Derek conducts A Besere Velt in a program of choral music with klezmer trumpeter Frank London. More info here.
June 10, 2023 | A Besere Velt Concert at MIT
Derek directs A Besere Velt in their annual Spring concert with guest artist Daniel Kahn in Kresge Auditorium. More info coming soon.
March 18, 2023 | Portrait Concert at MIT
Please join me for my portrait concert, presented by the Boston Festival for New Jewish Music in MIT’s Kresge Auditorium. Tickets here.
October 26, 2022 | Singing Yiddish Folksongs
In the season opener of the Boston Festival for New Jewish Music, Derek sings a couple of Yiddish folksongs. More info soon.
October 2, 2022 | A Besere Velt Concert in Fenway
Derek leads A Besere Velt in "Be the Change" a joyful, stirring program of new and classic Yiddish songs from haunting melodies to workers’ anthems that move us towards the dream of peace, freedom, and a better world for all. More info here.
August 4, 2022 | Clarinet Quintet in Nantucket, MA
Nicholas Davies and the Del Sol String Quartet perform the Clarinet Quintet at the Nantucket Community Music Center as a part of The Rossini Club. More info here.
August 3, 2022 | Clarinet Quintet premiere in Nantucket, MA
Nicholas Davies and the Del Sol String Quartet premiere the Clarinet Quintet at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, presented by The Rossini Club. More info here.
June 18, 2022 | Conducting A Besere Velt
I will conduct the 'A Besere Velt' choir in their program "Singing For Peace and Freedom" with guest artists Polina Shepherd and Lorin Sklamberg at the Eliot Church, Newton, MA. More info here.
May 26, 2022 | Four Yiddish Folksongs at YIVO
A performance of Four Yiddish Folksongs will conclude the conference in their closing concert. More info here.
February 17, 2022 | Lecture at Boston College
In Invited Talks, presented by the Literature and Philosophy Departments, Derek presents his lecture "Commedia Del' Arte: Class and Death in Mozart's Don Giovanni".
January 19, 2022 | Four Yiddish Folksongs at the Boston Synagogue
"Four Yiddish Folksongs - פֿיר ייִדישע פֿאָלקסלידער" receives it's in-person premiere at the Boston Festival for New Jewish Music. Livestream will be available. Megan Jones, soprano; Yasmin Valenzuela, clarinet; Abigale Reisman, violin; and Inês Andrade, piano. More info here.
April 21, 2021 | Four Yiddish Folksongs at Bard Conservatory of Music
YIVO Institute for Jewish Research presents Megan Jones, Collin Lewis, Blanche Darr, and Sung-Soo Cho in the premiere of Four Yiddish Folksongs. More info here.
June 16, 2019 | Duet for Violin and Viola in Hollywood, CA
Nicole Sauder & Jesse Morrison premiere Duet for Violin and Viola at Sunset ChamberFest, St. Thomas the Apostle. More info.
June 1, 2019 | Et in Bergamo Ego at Walt Disney Concert Hall
The Sakura Cello Quintet performs in the Blue Ribbon Garden at 8pm in the Los Angeles Philharmonic's Noon to Midnight Festival. More info here.
May 13, 2019 | String Quartet No. 1 in San Francisco
Students at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music perform String Quartet No. 1 in the SFCM Concert Hall.
May 2, 2019 | Scenes from Goya in San Francisco
A Hoefer Prize commission, Scenes from Goya was premiered by the San Francisco Conservatory of Music New Music Ensemble under the direction of Nicole Paiement. More info.
June 17, 2017 | Et in bergamo ego in Los Angeles, CA
The Sakura Cello Quintet premieres Et in bergamo ego at Sunset ChamberFest. More info.
December 7, 2015 | DMA recital at NEC
Featuring Tre Scherzi, Viola Sonata, Medications on Virginity, As Adam Early in the Morning, Saraband with a Young Adam, and his String Quartet No. 1.
October 20, 2015 | Saraband with a Young Adam in Boston, MA
Performed on New England Conservatory's Tuesday Night New Music.
May 6, 2015 | String Quartet No. 1 in Boston, MA
Presented in Jordan Hall, New England Conservatory of Music, Boston, MA and performed by Li-Mei Liang, Ken Hamao, Daniel Urbanowitz, Joseph Gotoff.
October 17, 2014 | String Quartet No. 1 in Boston, MA
Performed by Boston Young Composers Ensemble (aka Hub New Music) at Galatea Fine Art, Boston, MA.
June 6, 2014 | String Quartet No. 1 in Hollywood, CA
Sunset ChamberFest returns to St. Thomas the Apostle Hollywood to play the west coast premiere of String Quartet No. 1. More info here.
June 12, 2011 | Ophelia and Fugue from Tre Scherzi per Trio d’Archi in Cambridge, MA
Composers Derek David and Osnat Netzer present Meshugene Divas, a night of works by the composers at Club Oberon. More info here.
May 15, 2011 | String Quartet No. 1 in Boston, MA
Presented by New England Conservatory's Composer Series, NEC students perform String Quartet No. 1. More info here.
April 15, 2010 | Fugue from Tre Scherzi per trio d'archi in Jamaica Plain, MA
Presented in Boston New Music Initiative's inaugural concert series at St. John’s Episcopal Church.
April 21, 2009 | Le Grand Estampie Royal in Boston, MA
Performed live at the New England Conservatory of Music on April, 21, 2009. More info here.
