Sam Nester

Sam Nester leads a diverse career as a trumpet player, composer, and educator. He has been the artist-in-residence for Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, Bruny Island (Australia), and the Festival Arts Design Acerenza (Italy). He has received commissions for the creation of site-specific sound installations and musical compositions from the US State Department, the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC), Colby College, George Mason University, EcoArt Project, Metropolis Ensemble, and the City of Hobart (Australia).  

He is currently the artist-in-residence for the Center for Genomics and Systems Biology (CGSB) at NYU Abu Dhabi and has been working with policy officers from the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Environment and scientists from the Joint Research Centre on sound installations at the nexus of art, science, and policy.  

Nester has performed for Lincoln Center’s Mostly Mozart Festival & Lincoln Center Out of Doors, the Beijing Modern Music Festival, Paris Opera Ballet, Wordless Music Orchestra, Mark Morris Dance Group, Hawaii Symphony Orchestra, and the Kennedy Center in Washington DC among others. 

As a Fulbright scholar, he received a Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts from the Manhattan School of Music, earning the Helen Cohn Award for outstanding performance. In addition to The Juilliard School, Nester is member of the Music History faculty at the Manhattan School of Music.