David Maslanka (1943-2017) was an American composer who wrote for a variety of genres, including works for choir, wind ensemble, chamber music, and symphony orchestra. Best known for his wind ensemble compositions, Maslanka published nearly 130 pieces, including ten symphonies, eight of them for concert band, over 15 concerti, and a full mass. His compositional style is rhythmically intense and complex, highly tonal and melodically-oriented. His compositions have been performed throughout the United States, Europe, Australia, Canada, and Japan. His Tenth Symphony was orchestrated by his son, Matthew Maslanka, as it was incomplete at the composer's death. In addition to his five MacDowell residencies, Dr. Maslanka received generous grants from the University of Connecticut Research Foundation, the American Music Center, the Martha Baird Rockefeller Fund for Music, the State University of New York Research Foundation, and the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP). He earned the National Endowment for the Arts Composer Award three times (1974, 1975, and 1989). In 1999, he was awarded the National Symphony Orchestra regional composer-in-residence award.
Portrait by Matthew Maslanka
