Biography

David John Lang is an Australian composer living in Adelaide. He writes music for orchestras, choirs, singers and instrumentalists, always seeking to create art that is inventive, thoughtful and heartfelt. His music often reflects his love of storytelling, his Christian faith, his whimsical sense of humour, and an instinct for drama.

David’s recent projects include Are we there yet? for the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra (a 45-minute work based on Alison Lester’s famous picture book), a fanfare for the Sydney Symphony, and a cricket-themed piano trio in four ‘innings’ for Benaud Trio. He has been commissioned several times by the Adelaide Youth Orchestra and Adelaide Chamber Singers, and his music has also been performed in the USA, Canada and Germany. In 2016, David spent several weeks in Alaska on a Composing in the Wilderness course, and in 2012 he attended the Atlantic Music Festival in Maine.

David was awarded a Doctor of Philosophy in Music Composition in 2019 from Adelaide’s Elder Conservatorium of Music. His mentors here included Graeme Koehne, Anne Cawrse, David Harris, John Polglase, and Charles Bodman Rae.

photo: Mary-Ellen Parkinson

photo: Mary-Ellen Parkinson

David loves speaking and writing about music. He has written concert program notes for many performers and ensembles, including the Australian String Quartet and the Australian Chamber Orchestra. Most of his skills in this area were developed as a result of winning the 2010 Australian Youth Orchestra’s Music Presentation Fellowship.

David is also active as a performer. He has been Assistant Conductor of the Adelaide Wind Orchestra since 2016, and was Music Director of the A-grade Unley Concert Band in 2019. Since 2019 he has performed on trumpet, keyboard, and vocals with the aptly-named Music is Fun Band, sharing the joy of music with primary school children all over South Australia.

When David remembers there is more to life than music, he enjoys reading, bushwalking, and eating good chocolate.

photo: Mary-Ellen Parkinson