David Lee Box

David Box is an American composer, saxophonist, educator, and arts leader whose work spans concert music, interdisciplinary collaboration, theater, dance, film, and jazz. Currently a Graduate Part-Time Instructor at Texas Tech University, Box is completing the DMA in Music Composition (ABD, expected 2026) under the mentorship of Dr. Peter Fischer and Dr. Hideki Isoda. His creative practice brings together a lifelong performance career, deep stylistic fluency, and a commitment to community-centered artistry.

Box’s recent compositional projects include Fanfare and Fantasy for Symphonic Brass and Percussion (2024), commissioned and premiered by the Texas Tech University Symphony Orchestra on its international tour to Mexico City and Xalapa; Il Mio Vicino Sentimentale (2025), composed for the Splice Institute and Festival and premiered at Western Michigan University; Sod Poodle (2023), written for the Texas Tech University Flute Choir and premiered at the National Flute Association Conference in Phoenix; and a set of five new orchestral arrangements for the Lubbock Civic Orchestra featuring music by Doug Smith, Hannah Jackson, and Jonny Keys (2025). His creative work also includes large-scale interdisciplinary collaborations—including the full-length dance production Speakeasy for Flatlands Dance Theatre—and an extensive catalog of compositions and arrangements for film, chamber ensembles, jazz ensembles, and multimedia projects.

An artist with a rare breadth of stage and studio experience, Box spent multiple seasons as Musical Director and performance artist for Princess Cruises and Cunard’s Queen Victoria (Inaugural Team), where he coordinated complex international ensembles, rehearsed guest artists, and served as a composer, arranger, and conductor. His theater credits number more than seventy productions spanning Broadway tours, regional theaters, universities, opera houses, and musical organizations throughout the world. His film work includes composition, orchestrations, sound editing, foley, ADR, and audio engineering for CBS/Paramount, Amara Productions, and multiple independent films, earning him a Golden Boot Awards nomination for Best Score for The Devil Wears Spurs.

Box maintains an active profile as a performer and bandleader. He is Founder and Artistic Director of the Frontier Big Band, has worked with touring ensembles including The Temptations and The Four Tops, and has performed with regional orchestras, jazz bands, and commercial groups across the country. His discography includes releases on Centaur Records and collaborations with artists such as Ron Sout, Malford Milligan, and Je Renee.

As an educator, Box draws on more than twenty years of collegiate, public school, and private instruction. At Texas Tech University he teaches composition courses, private composition lessons, and serves as Treasurer for the Society of Composers, Inc. TTU Chapter. He also directs and organizes division-wide programming, including the “Pen to Stage” showcase and the “24×24” composition event. He previously served on the faculties of La Sierra University, Riverside City College, and Brazosport College, and held head and assistant band director positions in Texas public schools. His former students have gone on to careers in education, performance, and composition.

Box’s honors and affiliations include the Mary and Frances Wilson College of Visual and Performing Arts Graduate Fellowship, membership in the Recording Academy (Grammy U / 2025 Mentor Program), ASCAP, the American Federation of Musicians, the College Music Society, and the Society of Composers, Inc. He is a Texas Exes Life Member and a past recipient of numerous scholarships and ensemble awards.

A native of California and longtime resident of Texas, Box continues to compose, teach, perform, and collaborate across disciplines, with current projects spanning chamber music, electronic media, and large concert works.