Chorus America offers advanced education and enrichment opportunities to prepare choral conductors for lifetime professional conducting careers. There are currently two types of programs: 1) an intensive four-day Conducting Masterclass for selected Fellows, as well as Associates and Auditors; and 2) single-session Conducting Masterclasses at the Annual Conference. Conducting Fellows are selected through a competitive application process for both programs.

Conducting Masterclass (Intensive Four-Day Program)

The Conducting Masterclass is designed to give choral conductors the opportunity to work with master teachers and coaches/mentors on skills to help them meet challenges beyond their university training. Conducting Fellows are selected through a competitive application process; opportunities to participate as Conducting Associates and Auditors are available to conductors of all experience levels.

"Chorus America’s Masterclass was an absolutely integral part of my success in progressing from a student conductor to having a professional career."
—Jason W. Harris, Director of Choral Ensembles, Oberlin College Conservatory of Music

The Conducting Masterclass includes podium time with professional-level ensembles, private coaching, and seminars that address non-musical responsibilities and provide other career-building information. A Conducting Masterclass will be presented each year in January over the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend. The focus will rotate each year: choral-orchestral conducting every other year; a cappella repertoire and children's chorus conducting alternating in the off years.

Children's/Youth Chorus Conducting Masterclass - January 2013

The Children's /Youth Chorus Conducting Masterclass with Duain Wolfe and Rollo Dilworth, will be held January 18-21, 2013 in Cincinnati, OH.  It is hosted by the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and the Cincinnati Children’s Choir.  The masterclass features the Cincinnati Children’s Choir and the May Festival Youth Chorus.  Please click here for more information.

Recent Conducting Masterclass

Choral-Orchestral Conducting Masterclass with David Hayes and Jacques Lacombe, January 13-16, 2012, in New York City, hosted by Mannes College, The New School for Music and featuring the Philadelphia Singers and the Mannes Orchestra

Conducting Masterclass at the Annual Conference

Each Annual Conference includes opportunities for conductors to work with a master teacher and a professional-level ensemble with a focus on specific repertoire. Conference delegates can observe these sessions and learn about the challenges of conducting that repertoire.

Recent Conducting Masterclasses at the Annual Conference

• Conducting Masterclass with Kathy Saltzman Romey and Anton Armstrong on sacred and secular 19th-century choral music, featuring the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers
  
• A Cappella Conducting Masterclass with Ragnar Bohlin on Scandinavian and Baltic choral music, featuring the International Orange Chorale of San Francisco
• Choral-Orchestral Conducting Masterclass with Jeffrey Thomas on J.S. Bach choral music, featuring the American Bach Soloists