Education
BA DePaul University
MA DePaul University
About
A native of Aurora, IL, David Sands began his cello studies at age 10. After graduating from DePaul University in 2014, he became a member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, where he sat as assistant principal and was a teaching artist for CSO Connect. David returned to DePaul University to earn his Master's degree under the tutelage of CSO cellist Brant Taylor. There he sat as principal of the DePaul Symphony Orchestra and now serves as an adjunct faculty member for the Music Education Department.
As a recording artist, David has participated in select studio work for the film Chi-raq and can be heard on the track "Mama" from the hit TV show Empire. He has appeared on the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's contemporary chamber music series MusicNOW and was a featured soloist and chamber musician for The Line-Up at Wrigley Field. Recently David was also featured in Chicago Fringe Opera's micro-opera series A City of Works.
David has served as a clinician of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and led masterclasses at DePaul and North Park University. His private students have performed on WFMT's Introductions and participated in vigorous programs such as The National Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles, The Chicago Chamber Music Festival, and the inaugural cohort of The Chicago Music Pathways Initiative.
David serves as a teaching artist and senior manager at The People's Music School of Chicago, a non-profit that brings free music education to over 800 children in Chicago. Through TPMS, he has performed chamber music alongside acclaimed pianist Emanuel Ax and curates an annual recital called PlayOut! in collaboration with The Center on Halsted. In his spare time, David can be found baking or singing barbershop quartets with himself.