Artist Bio
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 (b. 1983) is the recipient of numerous national and international awards for his work (see full list below), and his compositions have been performed throughout the world in venues such as the Sydney Opera House, the Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall, and the steps of the US Capitol.
Danyew’s recent work Into the Silent Land was named the winner of the 2019 Walter Beeler Memorial Composition Prize.
An early work for orchestra, The Night Eagle was awarded a prestigious BMI Composer Award. Five of his compositions for wind band are featured between Volumes 11 and 12 of Teaching Music Through Performance in Band (GIA).
In addition to composing, Danyew is a passionate educator who teaches composition lessons through his own private studio. He also teaches courses focused on helping young musicians craft their own creative careers at the Eastman School of Music’s Institute for Music Leadership.
He is the contributing author for the 2nd edition of Ramon Ricker’s book Lessons from a Street-Wise Professor: What You Won’t Learn at Most Music Schools (Soundown, 2018). He is also a frequent guest composer and lecturer at schools throughout the United States.
In 2020, Danyew and his wife, Ashley created Musician & Co. to equip 21st-century musicians with the tools and education they need to be both artists and business owners. They offer business education, a resource library, a template shop, and personalized career strategy sessions, professional writing support, and brand development for musicians who want to build and manage their own music careers.
Danyew grew up in New England, playing the saxophone and improvising music on the piano. 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.” Danyew performed as a saxophonist in the University of Miami Wind Ensemble under the direction of Gary Green, and this formative experience led him to begin composing works for wind band.
Danyew received a B.M. in Composition from the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami where his primary composition teachers were Scott Stinson and Dennis Kam. He also holds an M.M. in Composition 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 with Mario Davidovsky.
About the Music Catalog
Danyew self-publishes much of his music catalog, though several of his choral works are now available from Augsburg Fortress and Colla Voce. Visit the store to listen to recordings and audio samples, see perusal scores, and order music.
Composition Awards & Honors
Finalist, Sousa-Ostwald Award, American Bandmasters Association, 2023
Bandworld 100 list 2023 – Message of Light included, 2023
Bandworld 100 list 2022 – Magnolia Star included, 2022
GIA Teaching Composition Through Performance, Volume 12, 2 works included, 2021
Winner, Walter Beeler Memorial Composition Prize, 2019
Finalist, National Band Association William D. Revelli Composition Contest, 2019
Finalist, National Band Association William D. Revelli Composition Contest, 2018
GIA Teaching Composition Through Performance, Volume 11, 3 works included, 2017
Winner, Hot Springs Concert Band Composition Contest, 2012
Winner, Keene State College Wind Ensemble Call for Scores, 2011
Finalist, ASCAP Morton Gould Awards, 2006-2010
Honorable Mention, ASCAP/CBDNA Frederick Fennell Wind Ensemble Competition, 2010
Winner, Brighton Bands National Fanfare Competition, 2010
1st Prize, Shoreline Chorale “Celebrating Connecticut Composers” Competition, 2010
3rd Prize, Wegmans/Penfield Wind Ensemble Commission Competition, 2010
1st Prize, Octarium International Choral Composition Competition, 2009
Winner, Delaware Valley National Young Composer Competition, 2009
Runner-up, Sacra Profana Choral Composition Competition, 2009
Regional Winner, SCI/ASCAP National Young Composers Competition, 2008
1st Prize, Ithaca International Choral Composition Competition, 2008
Winner, BMI Student Composer Award, 2006
2nd Prize, APSU National Young Composers Competition, 2006
Winner, Frost Symphony Orchestra Composition Competition, University of Miami, 2006