Dr. Daniel McDavitt is Music Director and Conductor of the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Chorus, and Director of Cadet Vocal Music at the United States Coast Guard Academy, where he oversees a music program that includes four choral ensembles, a robust touring schedule, and a yearly musical theatre production. He has previously served on music faculties at Knox College, Loyola University, and Goucher College.

A versatile conductor, composer, arranger, and orchestrator, Dr. McDavitt’s international appearances include performances in Italy, Ireland, and most recently, St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle in England. Domestically, he has performed throughout the United States, with regular performances in New York City, Chicago, Boston, and Washington, D.C. He gave his Carnegie Hall debut in 2025.

An award-winning composer and educator, Dr. McDavitt has been commissioned by the Barlow Endowment for Music Composition, with numerous grants for research and performance, and regular commissions from community, university, and school choirs and orchestras. His scholarly honors include multiple presentations of his research at the Oxford Conducting Institute in the United Kingdom, Goucher College's Excellence in Teaching Award, and the U. S. Coast Guard Academy’s Spirit of the Bear Award. His compositions and arrangements for choir, orchestra, piano, and organ have been performed and broadcast throughout the United States and abroad, and are published with many of the top publishing companies in the United States.

Born and raised in Missouri (USA), Dr. McDavitt’s musical training was at Brigham Young University and the University of Illinois. He plays tennis any chance he can get, and loves spending time in nature, whether it be hiking, kayaking, or keeping the forest from overtaking his family’s property in Old Lyme, Connecticut.

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