Handel and Haydn Society President and CEO David Snead Named a Top 30 Professional By Musical America

Musical America has selected Handel and Haydn Society President and CEO David Snead as one of the top professionals working in the Performing Arts. David was one of 30 industry leaders to be honored for their work navigating through and out of Covid-19.

David led H+H during the pandemic, ensuring the H+H's annual performance of Messiah continued despite a state ban on choral performances. The organization also streamed 16 free concerts during this time and had a triumphant return to live performances with a free concert in August.

David and H+H partnered with nationally recognized PBS station GBH in December 2020 to record Messiah under public health protocols. All performers were masked and separated into small groups. The performances were then edited together to create "Messiah for Our Time," a television special which drew more than 160,000 broadcast and streaming views.

"The society has performed Messiah every year since 1854, and we didn't want to stop that," said Snead. "Messiah for Our Time allowed us to showcase our orchestra and chorus before a national audience and be a community resource for so many struggling with the pandemic."

Musical America also recognized Snead for his work to bring H+H back to performing in front of live audiences. Marin Alsop led the H+H Orchestra and Chorus presenting a free concert at Boston's Hatch Memorial Shell in front of over 10,000 people in August 2021. H+H performed Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, which included a world premiere of former U.S. Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith's new text for "Ode to Joy." This was the first live performance in almost 18 months.

Snead joined the Handel and Haydn Society in 2015, having previously served as VP of Marketing at the New York Philharmonic.

Musical America Worldwide is one of the top publications for the performing arts industry. The publication reaches more than 14,000 performing arts organizations and 24,000 musicians and professionals in more than 95 countries.

H+H's 2021-22 Season Performances include:

Beethoven Symphony No. 7

January 7 + 9

Symphony Hall

Haydn + Mozart

January 28 + 30

Symphony Hall

Bach Brandenburg Concertos

February 4 + 5 + 6

NEC's Jordan Hall

Bach + Vivaldi Gloria

April 1 + 3

Symphony Hall

Haydn The Creation

April 29 + May 1

Symphony Hall