Daniel Levy is an award-winning composer and working musician in New York City, where he writes scores for plays, musicals, opera, and film. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Miami University in Music Composition and a master’s degree from NYU/Tisch in Musical Theater Writing.

Growing up up in the Midwest, he was steeped in a typically American musical brew that included folk songs, Top 40 pop hits, Motown, Ukrainian liturgical music, hymns, Chicago (the horn band), Debussy’s only string quartet (he wore out the record), the Manhattan Transfer, Broadway shows by Steven Sondheim, classic country music, and big band jazz. He began gigging professionally as a bass player and lead singer at age 13, as well as working as singer-songwriter, and producing records and writing original scores for summer stock and college plays and musicals. It is likely that all of these influences can be heard in his music.

After moving to New York in 1986, Daniel quickly established working relationships with local and regional theaters (HERE Arts Center, Red Bull Theater, BAX, New Dramatists, Cucaracha, the York Theater, Shakespeare & Co., Orlando Shakespeare Festival, Imagination Stage, Manhattan Ensemble Theater, La MaMa, Dance Theater Workshop, Juilliard, and Fordham University Lincoln Center) and musicians (playing bass for Hindustani singer Falu and jazz flautist Latita Teresa, guitar for Texas fiddler Doc Wallace, and leading the alt-rock band Dreams of Flying).

Daniel is also a leader in urban teaching artistry and arts program design. His teaching artist work with Lincoln Center Institute (1993-2006) led to fruitful and ongoing partnerships with many other arts-in-education institutions, including 92nd Street Y, Carnegie Hall (the Musical Connections program at Sing Sing Correctional Facility, Lullaby Project, Musical Explorers and LinkUp! curricula used by 50 orchestras worldwide), Symphony Space, NJPAC, Musicians for Harmony, Young Audiences, Little Orchestra Society. He most recently began leading a new year-long music program at Taconic Correctional Facility for Project Music Heals Us. Daniel’s book: A Teaching Artist’s Companion: How to Define and Develop Your Practice (Oxford University Press, available on Amazon).

Member: Teaching Artist Guild, Association of Teaching Artists, Natl Guild for Community Arts Education, New York City Roundtable for Arts-in-Education, ASCAP, Dramatists Guild. See Daniel’s LinkedIn Profile