Bio

Shawn William Davern is an American composer, arranger, conductor, trombonist and music educator. He currently serves as a second year graduate teaching associate pursuing a doctoral of musical arts degree in conducting at The Ohio State University (OSU) School of Music, under the direction of Dr. Russel C. Mikkelson. He also serves as the conductor of The OSU Professional School Orchestra and sousaphonist for the Columbus-based brass band Island Fever Brass.

Davern is the co-founder, leader, head writer and lead trombone of The Sages of Future Soul, a remote recording big band that performs contemporary jazz, funk and soul standards. The Sages of Future Soul recordings have featured artists including Alexa Tarantino, Justin Kauflin and Dr. Chloe Swindler. Founded in 2020, the ensemble has gone on to be named a semi-finalist in the 2023 Petrichor Music Competition Large Ensemble Division and the ensemble looks forward to releasing their first commercial album soon!

Prior to his appointment at OSU, Davern served as a performing arts instructor at the Manlius Pebble Hill School, where he oversaw the 3-12 concert band program and taught additional courses in music theory, keyboard and general music. He was the recipient of the 2017 Massachusetts Music Educators Association Promising Young Music Educator Award and worked as the trombone workshop assistant at the 2019 Boston University Tanglewood Institute. Davern made his international conducting debut at the 55th International Horn Symposium in Montreal on his own composition commissioned for and performed by the NUCORNO Jazz horn ensemble. He has also appeared as a guest conductor with The OSU Trombone Choir, Double Reed Camp Choir, Boston University (BU) Trombone Choir, BU Tanglewood Institute Trombone Choir, James Madison University (JMU) Trombone Choir, Jazz Ensemble, Jazz Band and most recently with the JMU Alumni Jazz Band.

Davern’s compositions and arrangements have been performed in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and South Korea. He is the editor and transcriber of The Music Method, a new publication aimed to develop the artistry of the modern trombonist, authored by the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s Principal Trombone, Toby Oft. Davern is also a member of the Millennium Composers Initiative. His primary composition teachers are Dr. Eric Guinivan and Dr. Chuck Dotas. Davern’s composition entitled The Natural Lands: Suite for Tuba Euphonium Quartet was the recipient of the International Tuba Euphonium Associations 2019 R. Winston Morris Award for Excellence for Tuba Euphonium Composition. His composition for wind ensemble entitled An Elegant Sufficiency was named a finalist twice in the National Band Association William D. Revelli Composition Competition and performed at the Virginia Music Educators Association Conference by the Valley Wind Ensemble. The composition was also named a national finalist in the American Prize in Composition Band/Wind Ensemble Professional Division and the Ernst Bacon Memorial Award for the Performance of American Music. In 2018, Davern’s arrangement of George Gershwin’s I Got Rhythm was performed live on NBC by the James Madison University Marching Royal Dukes for the 92nd Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City. He has also arranged for the Boston Brass, with performances in collaboration with the JMU Marching Royal Dukes and University of Missouri Marching Mizzou. Davern’s works for trombone choir have been performed by the Boston University Trombone Choir, Eastman Trombone Choir, Columbus State University Trombone Choir and the Ithaca College Trombone Troupe. His works have also been performed at the Third Coast Trombone Retreat, D.C. Trombone Workshop, Boston University Tanglewood Institute and Fruhling Posaunen at Ithaca College. Davern’s jazz band pieces have been featured by the Boston University Big Band, the Royal College of Music Big Band, the JMU Jazz Ensemble, Jazz Band, Alumni Jazz Band and the twelve time Essentially Ellington Finalist Foxborough Jazz Ensemble. His works for jazz bands have been performed at the JMU George West Jazz Festival, the National Community Band Festival and the Jazz4Justice Festival in Washington, D.C. His Sonata for Trombone and Piano, subtitled Nostalgia Bostonia will be featured via commercial release by Dr. Brittany Lasch and Thomas Weaver. Davern’s new wind band work entitled Friendly City Overture, was written for and premiered in May 2024 by the JMU Wind Symphony, under the direction of Dr. Stephen Bolstad. Davern is published by Cherry Classics Music and Warwick Music.

Davern received his bachelor’s degree in music education at Boston University and also studied abroad at the Royal College of Music in London. He received his master’s degree in wind conducting at James Madison University, where he served as the graduate assistant of the university’s band program.