David First, born August 20, 1953, in Philadelphia, is an American composer. He attended the Combs Conservatory of Music (1971–1973) and studied with Dennis Sandole before auditing electronic music classes at Princeton University. As a guitarist, First performed with Cecil Taylor and the band Television. In 1977, he formed the band The Notekillers, recording the album The Zipper. First released the experimental album Resolver in 1991. In 1995, he co-created the opera The Manhattan Book of the Dead, receiving a National Endowment for the Arts award. His discography includes the song “Jump Back - an Ode to the People of New York” (2001) and the albums Universary (2002) and Privacy Issues (2010). First received a Foundation for Contemporary Arts grant in 2001 and a Mary Flagler Cary Trust prize in 2002. In 2012, his ensemble New Party Systems released the song “We Are”.
