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Johann Nepomuk David (30 November 1895 – 22 December 1977) was an Austrian composer.
David was born in Eferding. He was a choirboy in the monastery of Sankt Florian and studied at an episcopal teacher training college in Linz, 1912–1915, after which he became a school teacher. He studied briefly (1921–22) at both the Musikhochschule (where was a composition student of Joseph Marx)[1] and the university of Vienna (where he studied with Guido Adler). He returned to Linz in 1922, where he acted as musical director of the Linz "Kunststelle" until 1924. From January 1925 until the autumn of 1934 he was a teacher at a local catholic school, founded and directed a Bach choir, and was organist at a Protestant church at Wels. He then became professor of composition and theory at the Musikhochschule in Leipzig (November 1934 – January 1945). From 1945 to 1947 he was professor of music at the Mozarteum, Salzburg, and finally, from 1948 to 1963, professor of theory and counterpoint (practically: composition) at the Musikhochschule in Stuttgart. At Stuttgart, he also directed the Bruckner choir (1949–52), the academy's chamber orchestra (1950–53).
David wrote a number of orchestral works including eight symphonies (of which the fifth has been recorded, as have some other works including a disc of organ music,) several concertos including an organ concerto and three violin concertos, instrumental works including many for or with organ, and many choral works. His general style changed from the modal tendencies seen in his first two symphonies to the more acerbic though still tonal sound of the later ones.
David died, aged 83, in Stuttgart. His son, Thomas Christian David (1925–2006), was also a composer.
His pupils included Hans Georg Bertram (1936–2013), Seóirse Bodley (1933–2023), Johan Kvandal (1919–1999), Helmut Lachenmann (born 1935), Hans Stadlmair (1929–2019), and Ruth Zechlin (1926–2007).
