Sean Shepherd
Sean Shepherd is an American composer based in New York City and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. His work has been performed by major orchestras, ensembles, and performers across the United States, Europe, and Asia. Performances include those with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, the National Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, and New World Symphony Orchestra, at festivals including the Aldeburgh Festival, Heidelberger Frühling, La Jolla Music Festival, Lucerne Festival, Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, and Tanglewood, and with leading European ensembles including Ensemble Intercontemporain, the Scharoun Ensemble Berlin, the Asko|Schönberg Ensemble and the  Birmingham Contemporary Music Group. Early life and education. Shepherd was born in 1979 in Reno, Nevada. He performed his undergraduate work at Indiana University, where he studied under David Dzubay and American composer Claude Baker. His graduate work was completed at the Juilliard School, where he studied with American composer Robert Beaser, followed by doctoral studies under Puerto Rican Composer Roberto Sierra and American Composer Steven Stucky at Cornell University. Career. In 2012, Shepherd was named the Kravis Emerging Composer of the New York Philharmonic. Shepherd's "Blue Blazes" premiered with National Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Christoph Eschenbach  in 2013. In 2021, Shepherd's work was featured at the Tanglewood Music Festival and at the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival. His work was deemed a "season highlight" when performed at the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music in 2021. Shepherd served as a finalist judge in the 2021 Broadcast Music, Inc.'s 69th Annual Student Composer Awards.