Press Quotes
"The engrossing one-hour opera Penny [by Douglas Pew and Dara Weinberg] is a thought-provoking musical feast. There are moments of real genius in this opera – where character, music, and song meet in a way that is pure magic." －Jessica Vaughan, DC Metro Theater Arts
"Penny is a story we haven't heard before, told with compelling directness and through effective music. It's about an adult autistic woman finding her voice. This may be one of the most interesting roles I've seen recently. The different levels of musical characterization were far more than merely evocative, and they succeeded on a dramatic as well as a musical level. Penny simply works, not because we should like it, but because it has a story to tell." －Anne Midgette, Washington Post
"Pew's score－mirabile dictu－soars into a beautiful, Romantic vocal triptych. It was a stunning, quality moment. Vocal composers today are still haunted by Puccini. They fear Puccini, fear his gift for melodies and arias, and are deathly afraid to be compared unfavorably to him. Pew and Weinberg evidently do not fear Puccini. Monday evening's Kennedy Center audience didn't miss this magical moment during which this your team fully re-engaged with tradition." －Terry Pinnock, Washington Times
"Doug has the ability to strike at the root of the emotional world through his music “with a showman’s touch and a poet’s soul.” －Jake Heggie, composer
"Pew's music is sensual, other-worldly, expressive and showcasing a rich harmonic pallet, sure to connect with audiences, while saying something fresh, profound and meaningful.” －Pianists Craft, Vol. 2, Scott Holden (BYU)
Select Accolades
- Penny, one-hour opera premiered at the John F. Kennedy Center, January 2015 - commissioned by Washington National Opera
- A Game of Hearts, opera scene presented a the Opera America New Works Forum, January 2014 - commissioned by Washington National Opera
- Composer-in-Residence, St. Thomas Episcopal Church, Cincinnati, OH, 2012-present
- Kyrie, 2nd place winner in the Musica Sacra International Composition Competition, May 2013
- A La Orilla Azul Del Silencio, commissioned by the Barlow Endowment for New Music, January 2012
- Fulbright Scholar at the Fryderyk Chopin University in Warsaw, Poland, 2011/12 academic year
- Bagatelles, 1st place in the 2009 ASCAP/SCI National Student Composer's Competition
- Air: 30,000 feet, 2008 ASCAP Morton Gould Composition Award