Earning his Bachelor’s degree in Music Theory and Composition in 2009 from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Derek Cooper studied with American Prix de Rome winner Daniel Perlongo while also taking lessons with Jack Stamp, Christopher Marshal, and Richard Danielpour. Derek continued to study with Richard Danielpour, earning his Master’s degree from Manhattan School of Music in composition in 2014. In the Fall of 2014, Derek returned to Manhattan School of Music to begin his doctoral studies under Dr. Reiko Fueting as a doctoral teaching fellow. In 2016, Derek joined the ICEBERG collective, a select and diverse group of emerging New York composers.
His music has been performed by groups including Contemporaneous, the North Shore Symphony Orchestra , the Indiana University of Pennsylvania wind ensemble, and the Blueshift Ensemble throughout North America.
Derek currently resides in Manhattan, where he teaches theory and ear training at Manhattan School of Music, as well as composition at the school’s summer camp program. In 2017, Derek took part in a two-week residency with Crosstown Arts in Memphis, TN, participated in the Pressure Waves Composer Workshop in Winnipeg with Groundswell, and will have his concerto for Viola and Orchestra performed by the North Shore Symphony Orchestra in New York. In addition, he took part in a week long educational residency with the Susquehannock School District in Glen Rock, PA. His music is published through his own website as well as Knightwind Music. For more information and to hear samples of Derek’s work, visit: www.DerekCooperComposer.com.
-https://www.derekcoopercomposer.com/bio
