Johann Nepomuk David was an Austrian composer, organist, conductor, and educator, noted for his eight symphonies, three violin concertos, and many other works. From 1909 to 1912, David sang as a chorister at St. Florian and studied at the Gymnasium of the Benedictine Monastery at Kremsmünster Abbey. He pursued further courses at the Academy of Music and the University of Vienna, studying from 1921 to 1922 with Joseph Marx and Guido Adler. While there, he met Josef Matthias Hauer and Arnold Schoenberg. In 1925 he became a teacher at the Catholic Elementary School and founded the Bach Choir, which he led until 1934. He was also the organist at Christ Church in Wells, and taught composition at the Academy of Music in Leipzig, later serving as the acting director. During World War II, David was listed by the Nazis as an important artist and was exempt from military service, though he was required to provide music for propaganda. Following the war, David taught composition and conducted choral music at the Salzburg Mozarteum, and from 1948 to 1963, he was professor of theory and counterpoint at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Stuttgart. He led the Stuttgart Bruckner Choir and the University Chamber Orchestra in concerts in Paris and made recordings for South German Radio in Stuttgart. While David's music was fairly conservative in style, he was friendly with many modernist composers and conducted their works. Some of his students were Hans Stadlmair, Helmut Lachenmann, Ruth Zechlin, and Hans-Jörg Bertram.