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Born in New York City of Dominican descent, Francisco J. Núñez is a composer, conductor, a leading figure in music education, and a visionary, whose strongly held ideas have resulted in the critical and popular success of the Young People’s Chorus of New York City (YPC). Mr. Nunez formed the YPC in 1988 with two goals in mind: commitments to musical excellence and to providing an atmosphere where young people of diverse ethnic, economic, and religious backgrounds could further their personal and artistic growth through the study and performance of music, and today he is often contacted by cities around the country for help in replicating the YPC success. For his exemplary work with children, Mr. Núñez has been presented with numerous awards, such as the Child Champion award from Child magazine, a Liberty Award from the New York Post, and a Luminary Award from Casita Maria. He was recently named as one of the 100 Most Influential Hispanics of 2005 by Hispanic Business magazine and selected for GMC’s advertising campaign as an unsung Hispanic hero doing great work in his community.

An editor at Boosey & Hawkes, Chester Novello, and G. Schirmer publishing companies, Mr. Nunez is also a composer, whose award-winning works and arrangements for choirs, orchestras, and solo instruments are inspired by a wide range of Latin cultures and musical idioms. As a conductor, Mr. Núñez also leads the University Glee Club of New York City, the New York University Singers, and NYU Women’s Chorus, and is active as a guest conductor and master teacher for choral workshops, demonstrations, and festivals nationwide.

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Full Biography

Born in New York City of Dominican descent, Francisco J. Núñez is a composer, conductor, a leading figure in music education, and a visionary, whose strongly held ideas have resulted in the critical and popular success of the award-winning Young People’s Chorus of New York City (YPC), a chorus of 300 young people from 7 through 18 of all ethnic, economic, and religious backgrounds.  Mr. Núñez is frequently called upon by choirs throughout the country for help in replicating the YPC success, and last year addressed the development of multicultural urban choirs in a keynote speech at the national conference of Chorus America in Washington, D.C. One of today’s most sought-after youth choirs with celebrated performances on three continents, YPC is the resident chorus of the 92nd Street Y.  In addition, together with the New York City Department of Education, Mr. Núñez is bringing the YPC choral program to hundreds more children through the chorus’s Satellite program in New York City schools and Casita Maria at the Bronx Studio School for Writers & Artists in the South Bronx. 

Mr. Núñez formed the chorus in 1988 in an effort to foster personal and artistic growth and cross-cultural understanding among children, as well as to provide a safe haven where young people from many different backgrounds could come together with the common goal of learning and creating beautiful music.  This season the chorus celebrated its 10th anniversary as an independent chorus with a sold-out concert at Carnegie Hall.

In addition to their acclaimed performances, Mr. Núñez and the YPC are impacting the world of choral music itself through their groundbreaking Transient Glory series of concerts, CDs and publications, by commissioning today’s most distinguished composers to write music for children’s choirs.  To date, YPC has sung more than 50 world premieres and commissioned almost as many new works, which are being published by Boosey & Hawkes in association with G. Schirmer and Chester Novello.  The chorus’s first Transient Glory CD was released in 2004 to critical raves, and the second—Transient Glory II—was released in January 2008. 

Mr. Núñez is also a composer whose award-winning works and arrangements for choirs, orchestras, and solo instruments are inspired by a wide range of Latin cultures and musical idioms. A CD of his music, entitled Cantan, recorded by the Ithaca College Women’s Chorus under the direction of Janet Galvan was released in 2004. As a conductor, Mr. Núñez also leads the University Glee Club of New York City, the New York University Singers and NYU Women’s Chorus, and is a guest conductor and master teacher for choral workshops, demonstrations, and festivals nationwide.  

For his exemplary work with children, YPC Artistic Director Francisco Núñez has been presented with numerous awards, such as the prestigious Child Champion award from Child magazine, a Liberty Ambassador medal from the New York Post, and a Luminary Award from Casita Maria.  He has also been honored as one of the 100 Most Influential Hispanics of 2005 by Hispanic Business magazine, a 2005 man of achievement by Hispanic Magazine, and selected for GMC’s advertising campaign as an unsung Hispanic hero doing great work in the community.  In 2006 Mr. Núñez and the chorus were recognized with Chorus America’s Education Outreach Award.