Jared Destro was born in Buffalo, New York, USA on August 19, 1998. Jared began his musical career as a piano and organ improviser, starting his lessons at 13. Soon after, he joined the Eastman Community Music School in Rochester, NY for composition lessons with composer Paul Hofmann, and he began regular performances with the Buffalo Chromatic Club as a solo piano improviser.

At the research-focused University at Buffalo, Jared earned his Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Music Theory, Harmony, and Counterpoint from 2016-2019. Before graduating summa cum laude, Jared was able to also attend Charles University in Prague, Czech Republic for a term in 2018. While the emphasis in this program was political science and history, it proved instrumental in connecting the composer to the fine arts, literature, history, and, of course, music.

Jared then earned his Master of Music (MMus.) in Composition from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama (RWCMD) with distinction, from 2019-2021. He gathered a lot of practical experience, and he was able to collaborate with several musicians and organizations. These include the Ernest Read Symphony Orchestra, BBC NOW, Tŷ Cerdd, the Band of the Welsh Guards, and on several occasions the Symphony Orchestra of the RWCMD.

He was commissioned for the National Eisteddfod of Wales 2021, the World Harp Congress 2022, as well as by the Junior Conservatoire of the RWCMD on numerous occasions. During this time, important works for the composer include: Harvest Festival, for orchestra; Flower Suite, for flute quintet; Chevrefoil (“Honeysuckle”), for brass quintet; Epitaph, for two flutes and harp.

Beginning in the autumn of 2024, he began his Ph.D. studies under Martin Suckling at the University of York in England. The inspiration of his current research, as well as his general approach to composition, is outlined more in the Philosophy section. 

Accolades

Numerous of his works have been awarded or shortlisted for awards. Madonna of the Lilies was awarded the first-place prize (International) in the Warsaw Wind Ensemble Composition Contest 2020. It was performed by Concert Orchestra of the Representative Artistic Ensemble of the Polish Armed Forces, and it was conducted by Michelle Rakers.

Piano Trio No. 1 was awarded second overall in the NMGCS II International Composition, which was a celebration of composer Fikret Amirov. It was premiered in Baku, Azerbaijan on 22.09.2022 at the Hajibeyli International Festival, and it was performed on 20.10.2022 at the Bruno Walter Auditorium Lincoln Center, New York City.

In Flanders Fields, for string orchestra, was performed by the chamber orchestra Kammermusikkreis Würselen on March 5th at 6pm in the Martin-Luther-Church at 52146 Würselen, Bahnhofstraße. 1.

More recently, his Piano Quartet was shortlisted for the O/Modernt Composition Award 2023, and his Piano Suite No. 5 was shortlisted for the Red Jasper Award 2022. Additionally, he has worked as a composer and orchestrator in the studio team of composer, conductor, and pianist Xu Zhong.