David Cerna
A pianist, arranger and conductor whose musical path carried him from the Colburn School to USC — with a featured performance of Grieg along the way.
The La Mirada Symphony welcomed pianist David Cerna as its featured student soloist at the May 22, 2022 concert, where he performed the first movement of Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A minor.
One of the most demanding works in the piano repertoire, the concerto gave Cerna an opportunity to step into the spotlight with the full orchestra at a pivotal moment in his development as a young musician.
Arranger
Conductor
A High School Senior Heading to USC
Cerna graduated from California Virtual Academies in June 2022 and enrolled that fall at the Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California.
Classical and sacred music hold a central place in his life. That devotion shapes both his repertoire choices and his long-term goals as a musician.
Training at the Colburn School
Cerna started playing piano at age seven and later studied formally at the Colburn School of Performing Arts in Los Angeles.
There, he held the Herbert Zipper Scholarship, awarded for outstanding musicianship.
Colburn also placed him in the Ed and Mari Edelman Chamber Music Institute, where he performed alongside other advanced young musicians and developed the ensemble skills that complement his work as a solo pianist.
A young artist developing across disciplines.
- Featured student soloist with the La Mirada Symphony
- Performed Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A minor
- Herbert Zipper Scholarship recipient at Colburn
- Ed and Mari Edelman Chamber Music Institute
- Arranger and orchestrator of classical and sacred music
- Founder and conductor of multiple choirs
- Continued studies at the USC Thornton School of Music
For David Cerna, music is more than performance. It is a calling.Young Artists · La Mirada Symphony
A Passion for Choral Music
Piano performance only tells part of Cerna’s story.
He also arranges, orchestrates, and transcribes classical and sacred works. Beyond that, he has founded and conducted several choirs, ranging from adult and children’s groups to virtual ensembles.
That range reflects a musician who treats composition, arranging, and conducting as natural extensions of his performing career rather than as side interests.
Music as a Calling
Cerna traces his sense of musical purpose to Johann Sebastian Bach’s belief that music should serve both spiritual expression and the refreshment of the soul.
That philosophy has helped shape his approach to performance, sacred music, and ensemble leadership.
For Cerna, music is not simply a matter of technique. It is a way to communicate, serve, and create something meaningful for the people who hear it.
A student performance can be one concert. Or it can be the beginning of a musical life.A Place on the Stage
A Place on the Stage
David Cerna’s appearance with the La Mirada Symphony represents one example of the orchestra’s long-standing commitment to giving young musicians meaningful experience on the concert stage.
By performing a major concerto with a full orchestra, a student musician steps into a professional musical environment where preparation, collaboration, communication, and artistry all meet in real time.
Those experiences can become important milestones in a young artist’s development, especially as they prepare for conservatory study, university programs, and professional musical careers.
Cerna’s performance in 2022 joined a growing tradition of student soloists, composers, and emerging artists who have shared the La Mirada Theatre stage with the Symphony.
From Student Soloist to the Next Stage
When David Cerna performed Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A minor with the La Mirada Symphony in May 2022, he was approaching graduation and preparing to continue his musical education at USC’s Thornton School of Music.
His story reflects why opportunities for young musicians matter. A single appearance with a full orchestra can become part of a much larger journey — one built through study, discipline, collaboration, and the experience of making music in front of a live audience.
The La Mirada Symphony continues to celebrate young artists and create opportunities for emerging musicians to find their place on the concert stage.