Composer-conductor-flutist Daniel Kessner received his Ph.D. with Distinction at UCLA in 1971, studying with Henri Lazarof. His more than 90 compositions have received over 500 performances worldwide, and 15 works are recorded commercially. Most important awards include the Queen Marie-José International Composition Prize in Geneva and a 2003 Fulbright Senior Scholar Award to lecture and perform at the Musikhochschule in Trossingen, Germany. He has been a member of the music faculty at California State University, Northridge, for the past 35 years, teaching composition and music theory and directing various ensembles. As a flutist, he has given solo recitals in France, Italy, Germany, El Salvador, England, and the Czech Republic, and has performed in numerous chamber music concerts. He has appeared as Guest Conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic New Music Group, the Black Sea Philharmonic of Romania, and recently the Moorpark Symphony Orchestra, among others. He is also a regular lecturer on the Los Angeles Philharmonic's "Upbeat Live" series at Disney Hall.