Award-winning Music Composer & Orchestrator

NAVONA RECORD LABEL

Adeptus On-Air Podcast Interview!

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Thank you so much Mike Hoffman from Adeptus On-Air for this awesome interview discussing music and creativity! We discuss the latest releases from Navona Records which include 3 of my compositions on two albums: Symphonic Stradivarius (album received the Global Music Award-Gold Medal Award, March 2025 ) which includes my multi award winning orchestral work, Nani Lahaina~Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra. And, second album, Journey to Serenity which includes my two tracks, Sirens of the Salish Sea IV and V. 

Enjoy the interview and happy listening!

Nan

 

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Clouzine International Music Award Fall 2025!

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With a grateful heart I share with you  that Sirens of the Salish Sea IV. Serenely Sailing won ” Best Classical Song” Award in the Clouzine International Music Awards, Fall 2025!  Serenely Sailing is the 4th movement of the Orchestral Suite, Sirens of the Salish Sea and it appears on the album, Journey to Serenity, track #4.  This work was recorded with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra in Glasgow  and with the brilliant pianist, Anna Kislitsyna and Miran Vaupotic conducting. Thank you Clouzine for this honor!

Nani Lahaina Nominated~Hollywood Independent Music Awards!

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Hollywood Independent Music Awards: HIMA: Nani Lahaina nomination!

I am so excited to share that Nani Lahaina~Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra is nominated in the 2025 Hollywood Independent Music Awards in the Contemporary Classical Category! It’s an honor to be on this list of distinguished composers. Here is the Nominee list

 

Gold Awarded to Symphonic Stradivarius performed by the London Symphony Orchestra Davide Alogna Violin and Miran Vaupotic Conductor Global Music Awards

Nani Lahaina~Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra performed by the brilliant violinist, Davide Alogne  with the outstanding London Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Miran Vaupotic, appears on the album: Symphonic Stradivarius. This album has already been awarded with the Global Music Awards Gold Medal Award for Classical in Spring 2025. Symphonic Stradivarius is on the Navona Records Label, a  PARMA Recording

 

GMA’S Gold Medal

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Global Music Awards Gold Medal Album Symphonic Stradivarius 2025

Gold Medal Winner

Global Music Awards has awarded our album. Symphonic Stradivarius with a Gold Medal Award in Classical!

London Symphony Orchestra, Miran Vaupotić, Davide Alogna

Symphonic Stradivarius Classical

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am so honored to be among the composers of this spectacular album and grateful the Global Music Awards for this outstanding Gold Medal. Symphonic Stradivarius is beautifully performed by the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Miran Vaupotić conductor with the most exquisite performance on the Stradivarius Violin by Davide Alogna.

Nani Lahaina~Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra appears on the PARMA recording, Symphonic Stradivarius, release on Jan. 10, 2025

Symphonic Stradivarius a New Release 2025

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A new recording is here now! Stradivarius violin, London Symphony Orchestra with violinist,  David Alogna

LISTEN TO THE ALBUM: SPOTIFY, APPLE MUSIC, AMAZON MUSIC HERE !

I am completely ecstatic  to share with you my newest orchestral work, Nani Lahaina~Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra on the album, Symphonic Stradivarius, (yes, the Strad. violin) with 11 composers from around the globe. We recorded this new album in London with the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Miran Vaupotić with renowned violinist David Alogna from Italy performing on a 17th century “red” Stradivarius violin. The experience was extraordinary,  breathtaking and I am so grateful! Read about the recording session from June 6, 2024 in London Here

The Strad Magazine features our violinist, Davide Alogna and the 335 yr Strad!

Symphonic Stradivarius: a 335-year-old Strad violin gives voice to the music of today

In the Youtube video below, Nan Avant discusses her latest work, Nani Lahaina~ Rhaposdy for Violin and Orchestra

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The Story

Nani Lahaina~ Beautiful Lahaina ~ Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra

 

The winds and fire of the historical town, Lahaina, Maui (August 2023)

The Kaua’ula winds of Maui, Hawaii have been made famous in mele (songs) because of their powerful forces. It is through several historical descriptions of these powerful winds, my heartfelt loss for the people of Lahaina and my own early life experience of living and working for several months in Lahaina, that inspired me to compose Nani Lahaina, Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra.

 

“Stories of Old Lahaina”

by Inez MacPhee Ashdown,

as told by Mrs Alice Kaehukai Ka’ae in the late 1800’s.

“In the days of my mother’s youth, there were terrible winds which used to come from the Kauaula Valley. They would blow away all the hale pili

(grass houses), and tear down the trees. So, the people prayed and a sign was given as a warning to them. This sign was a loud whistling which would be heard about three days before the great wind would start.”

In 1867, a description of Lahaina appears in the newspaper Ke Au Okoa by a C & K of Lahaina. “Lahaina is a land of very strong winds. At times, it is a place of terribly destructive winds, but this is not a regular occurrence. This is a wind that does not blow all the time. It just blew once a year. The wind begins blowing and for three or four days it roars in the uplands, and then exits seaward. The roaring is heard from above like the crashing of the sea against the base of a cliff.

In hopes of a new beginning for Lahaina, I dedicate this music to the people of Lahaina, Maui.

Thank you for the beautiful memories,

Mahalo. Nan

 

Nan Avant a PARMA Recording artist, Navona Records

 

Symphonic Stradivarius

New Works for Violin & Orchestra

London Symphony Orchestra
Miran Vaupotić conductor
Davide Alogna violin

Release Date: January 10, 2025
Catalog #: NV6688
Format: Digital
“Navona Records is pleased to present SYMPHONIC STRADIVARIUS, featuring decorated violinist Davide Alogna and the esteemed London Symphony Orchestra. Several contemporary composers assemble in this release to showcase the diverse influences and creative capabilities of modern classical composition.

Recorded at the historic LSO St. Lukes, this repertoire offers musical insight into the environmental aspects of our world, all united by a world class ensemble, celebrated soloist, and an instrument that has been passed down through centuries of lauded performers: a “1690s ‘Stevens’ Stradivari” belonging to the very first group of red varnished Violins ever made.

“At the heart of this release is the 1690s “Stevens” Stradivari, one of the first red-varnished violins ever crafted, likely commissioned by the Medici court. A remarkable example of Antonio Stradivari’s innovative craftsmanship, this long-pattern violin combines elements of earlier designs with new techniques that defined his legacy. Celebrated for its exceptional sound quality, the violin has been entrusted to some of the most gifted players through the Florian Leonhard Fellowship, including Nancy Zhou, whose performance on this instrument earned her the top prize at the Izaak Stern International Violin Competition in Shanghai. With SYMPHONIC STRADIVARIUS, this legendary instrument once again takes center stage, uniting centuries of musical tradition with the vibrancy of modern artistry.” press release by PARMA

London Symphony Orchestra, Strad Violin, Italian Violinist, Parma Recording!!

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Davide Alogna, violinist with the Stradivarius violin in hand!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am so excited to share this amazing recording session that took place last week in London at St. Luke’s Church in London with the London Symphony Orchestra, solo violinist Davide Alogna from Italy, an extraordinary and passionate violinist that played my piece, Nani Lahaina, Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra and the PARMA recording team.  I will have updates on this recording and release as everything comes together in the next few weeks/ months and for now I’m sharing some photos that Walt, my husband, took at the recording session. I was in the booth with the PARMA team, Brad Michel ( Senior Producer), Melanie Montgomery ( audio engineer)  and Chelsea Kornago ( publicity manager) and it was awesome!

Stay tuned, check back or join my newsletter which I send out every few months or when there is exciting news to share. The  score/ parts for this new work  will be available in  a few weeks on JW Pepper.

I want to give a shout out to my friend and another extraordinary violinist in Seattle that played through the violin part and added his bowing marks on this new work,  Arthur Zadinsky violinist in the Seattle Symphony, Thank you Arthur!

cheerio,

Nan

 

LSO!!
Brad Michel, Nan Avant and Melanie in the background

The American Prize Winner 2023!

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Press Release: Seattle composer, Nan Avant is the Winner of The American Prize 2023:
Composition, Pops/Light Music division, for her piece entitled “Tributum.”  Tributum for Celtic Bagpipes and Orchestra appears on the Navona Records album, Legends and Light v.2 performed by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, a PARMA recordings label.

Avant’s music was selected from applications reviewed recently from all across the United States. The American Prize National Nonprofit Competitions in the Performing Arts is the nation’s most comprehensive series of contests in the performing arts. The American Prize is unique in scope and structure, designed to recognize and reward the best performing artists, directors, ensembles and composers in the United States at professional, college/university, community and high school levels, based on submitted recordings. Now in its thirteenth year, The American Prize was founded in 2010 and is awarded annually in many areas of the performing arts. Thousands of artists from all fifty states have derived benefit from their participation in the contests of The American Prize, representing literally hundreds of communities and arts organizations across the nation.

Link to official announcement

Composer’s Biographical Sketch:

Avant’s music awards and nominations include two Global Music Awards~Silver Medal 2022, a Finalist in The American Prize and a four-time nominee in the Hollywood Music in Media Awards. Avant’s ’Tributum’ has aired on Ireland’s Public Radio in the UK and throughout the U.S. Avant has scored numerous indie films and her concert music has been performed in the U.S. and internationally. Avant holds a B.F.A. degree in Piano Performance from California Institute of the Arts and has studied film scoring at the Pacific Northwest Film Scoring institute. www.nanavant.com 

WEBSITE: www.theamericanprize.org

BLOG: www.theamericanprize.blogspot.com

CONTACT: David Katz, chief judge of The American Prize

EMAIL: theamericanprize@gmail.co

Dimensions 5 New PARMA Digital Release!

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PARMA and Navona Recordings have created  another spectacular recording with  our latest album, Dimensions 5, digital release out today, July 28, 2023!  These are orchestral  works by 6 contemporary composers and one very famous Italian composer Mascagni. All works are original and I am super excited to share this album.

Stream on your favorite streaming platform:

Spotify, Deezer,Apple, Amazon

or you can purchase a downloadable link on my Bandcamp page ( you will need to sign in and create an account)

2022 Global Music Award Silver Medal Award

Outstanding Achievment: *Rememoramini – Tango for Bandoneon, Piano and Strings composition and original score by Nan Avant.

Rememoramini~ (pronounced as: Air-eh-may-moor-uh-meany)  is the Latin term for “call to mind or remember”. was originally recorded as a sextext in Seattle at Studio X, a Burmer Productions LLC in 2020.   I wanted to have a recording available for String Orchestra and was fortunate to have Rememoramini recorded in Zagreb, Croatia this past winter, 2023.  The soloists were outstanding musicians, Charlene Farrogia, piano  and Franko Bozac, bandoneon with Miran Vaupotic conducting the Zagreb Festival Orchestra. I loved being at this recording session in Zagreb and experiencing the music and Zagreb!

 

If you have a CD player and would like to purchase a CD of Dimensions 5, send me an email:
njavant@gmail.com

2023 Global Music Award!

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The Global Music Awards 2023

I am honored to announce that I have received  Global Music Award~ Silver Medal from the  for my orchestral work, Sirens of the Salish Sea 1. Soundness of the Sea for Violin and Orchestra  recorded by The London Symphony Orchestra on  Navona Records, PARMA recording label which appears on the album Symphonic Chronicles V.1 released April 28, 2023.
The Global Music Awards was “established in 2011, by Thomas Eugene Baker, Ph.D., the Global Music Awards is a well-known international music competition which celebrates independent musicians. Global Music Awards is widely recognized by industry insiders as giving legitimacy to highly talented artists. ‘Global Music Awards is recognized as music’s golden seal of approval.
"...the evocative Sirens of the Salish Sea, are truly inspired and capable of 
imprinting clear images and sensations in our mind." ... Read more

"In love with natural landscapes, Avant exhibits her symphonic lyricism reaching 
grandeur and emotion, two qualities of her music.” Read more

Review by Sonograma Mag. May 29, 2023

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“.in the symphonic work Sirens of the Salish Sea: I. Soundness of the Sea (‘Sirenes del mar dels Salish: I. La solidesa del mar’), for violin and orchestra, the composer Nan Avant — about whom we have published a magnificent article— seeks to reflect the most difficult moments of the year 2020 through music and the essence of the sea. In love with natural landscapes, Avant exhibits her symphonic lyricism reaching grandeur and emotion, two qualities of her music.”

Carme Miró, Sonograma Magazine

May 29, 2023

 

 

 

I am so thankful for this outstanding review of our latest album, Symphonic Chronicles V.1. The original language is in Catalan and I used Google translate.

Títol: Symphonic Chronicles Vol. 1
Autors: Deborah Kavasch, Steve Law, John Wineglass, Barbara Jazwinski, Nan Avant, Simon Andrews
Intèrprets: Joseph Havlat, piano; Yumi Hwang-Williams, violí
London Symphony Orchestra
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Direcció: Miran Vaupotić, David Watkin
Segell discogràfic: Navona Records

Complete Review of Symphonic Chronicles v.1

“The London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Miran Vaupotić, and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, conducted by David Watkin, have come together and combined experiences to perform this new album, the first volume of the Symphonic Chronicles (‘Chronicles symphonic’), with works by contemporary composers of a wide variety of styles according to origin and influences. A good example of this is Steve Law’s Piano Concerto, which is inspired by Gershwin, Rachmaninov and Prokofiev, and at the same time conveys influences from jazz, pop and minimalism. In this sense, the Australian pianist Joseph Havlat reinforces these thematic connections, of great lyricism, and accentuates the rhythmic intensity of the jazz elements.
Desert Storm, by Deborah Kavasch, a composer specializing in extended vocal techniques, is a martial work (heavy on brass and percussion) written to celebrate the American victory in the war’s Operation Desert Storm of the Persian Gulf.
John Wineglass composed #elijah for solo violin and orchestra, a piece to honor a young African-American violinist who died in a violent confrontation with police in 2019. Yumi Hwang’s violin solos- Williams unfold in the middle of intense percussion that dramatizes the two movements, entitled “Tragic Innocence” and “Transcendence”.
Fantasy on Jazz (‘Fantasia en jazz’), by the composer Barbara Jazwinski, is a tribute to the music of New Orleans and the clarinet, which unfolds very wide and free melodic solos.
On the other hand, in the symphonic work Sirens of the Salish Sea: I. Soundness of the Sea (‘Sirenes del mar dels Salish: I. La solidesa del mar’), for violin and orchestra, the composer Nan Avant — about whom we have published a magnificent article— seeks to reflect the most difficult moments of the year 2020 through music and the essence of the sea. In love with natural landscapes, Avant exhibits her symphonic lyricism reaching grandeur and emotion, two qualities of her music.
The album ends with the “Interlude no. 3″ from the opera The Scars on his Back (‘The Scars on his Back’), by Simon Andrews, dedicated to the revolt that took place in Santa Fe in 1680 under the leadership of a legendary fighter named Po’ pay, who managed to bring down Spanish rule in New Mexico for twelve years. This interlude is notable for a large percussion section and complex textures for full orchestra.
The first volume of Symphonic Chronicles integrates all six compositions from a plural and organic perspective.”

Carme Miró, Sonograma Magazine

Here is the original review in Catalan. Symphonic Chronicles V.1