David was awarded the National Young Achiever of the Year in 1994 for his work as a producer and composer, after graduating from the University of Wollongong in 1992 with a High Distinction in Musical Composition. He has studied under Andrew Schultz, Andrew Ford, Barry Connyngham and is currently mentored by Brenton Broadstock and Brett Dean.

David received a 2002 Helpmann nomination for Best Original Score for shrunk: music from The Shrinking Ledge, and is the author of little timmy quiff a tap dancing children's opera commissioned by Port Fairy Spring Festival, and the orchestral works rue b. (or dr.stravinsky's bedside manor, pierre boulez a la discothéque and The Illusion of the End (after jean baudrillard). The Illusion of the End was performed by Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Kenneth Young as part of the 2003 Australian Composers Orchestral Forum.

David's chamber works include a set of solo clarinet pieces (walter piston, not easy and front room, upstairs) and varéserhead for three xylophones and stereohype: music for a dramatic entrance or exit for 24 brass and percussion. David has written two short film soundtracks: one for Trina Rowston's Mistress of the Lake, and the other for his own satirical homage to z-grade 80's French porn la faim. David's olivier messiaen is dead and buried: a secular requiem was a major work for organ with soprano written for Calvin Bowman and Miriam Gordon-Stewart and commissioned by City of Melbourne for performance in December 2002. It was subsequently broadcast nationally on ABC Classic FM in March 2003.

David wrote the music for choreovideographer Cazerine Barry's sprung for 2003 Melbourne Festival with subsequent tours to Adelaide Festival Centre, Sydney Opera House and Perth Institute of Contemporary Art. He recently completed a vaudeville Revival to his own book and lyrics and is completing a horror film chamber opera Doctor Couteau, a further collaboration with Cazerine Barry, and librettist Paul Magee. A section of this chamber opera was performed at the 2003 AMC/APRA Classical Music Awards by Simone Young and soprano Miriam Gordon-Stewart, and the opera is to be developed for 2005 presentation with IHOS Opera in Tasmania. This year he has collaborated with Koorie Sound Artist and Historian Genevieve Grieves on his first installation piece, DIG: A Sonic Excavation presented in the Cato Street Car Park, Prahran for the Journey Festival, in April 2004. He is presently composing a new 10-minute work the muster-book of the dynamical systems collective for TSO in his second year as a participant of ACOF. Playbox Theatre have commissioned David to write the theatre score for the premiere presentation of The Call in October as part of 2004 Melbourne Festival.

In 2005 David will write and present an epic 90 minute song cycle in collaboration with revered French poet and translator Yves Bonnefoy. This song cycle lockdown is being written for soprano Miriam Gordon-Stewart and has received the financial support of Australia Council.

David is Chair of Melbourne Fringe and a lecturer and tutor in the Centre for Ideas, VCA. He recently presented a seminar of his music at University of Melbourne Department of Music and is the foundation composer of a new music ensemble The Melbourne 8 with fellow composers Brenton Broadstock, Brett Dean, Jacques de vos Malan, Kate Neal, Anthony Pateras, Johanna Selleck and Julian Yu. The Melbourne 8 will present their first concert series of chamber music in 2005. David sits on the Cultural Affairs Advisory Board for City of Melbourne and the Arts Development, Presentation Funding Panel for Arts Victoria. He is a 2003 graduate of the Cranlana Programme Colloquia.