ANDREW MEGILL TO LEAD UI’S CHORAL PROGRAM
Andrew Megill is recognized as one the leading choral conductors of his generation, known for his passionate artistry and unusually wide-ranging repertoire, extending from early music to newly composed works.
This fall, Dr. Megill joins the faculty of the University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign) School of Music as Professor of Conducting and Director of Choral Activities. Upon learning of the appointment, he said “I am thrilled to contribute to the University’s extraordinary legacy as one of the nation’s most important centers for the study of the choral art.”
School of Music Director Jeffrey Magee noted that “Andrew Megill has all the right tools: extensive experience in professional and academic worlds, capacious knowledge of six centuries of choral music repertoire, impeccable rehearsal and conducting technique, and a gift for bringing out the best in the musicians with whom he works. He is a perfect match for the School of Music’s choral program, which was the first in the country to offer the doctorate in choral conducting and whose alumni are in leadership positions all over the country.”
Dr. Megill currently leads three of North America’s finest professional vocal ensembles: the Montreal Symphony Orchestra Chorus, the Carmel Bach Festival Chorale, and Fuma Sacra. He frequently prepares choirs for performances with the world’s leading orchestras, including the Cleveland Orchestra, Dresden Philharmonie, Montreal Symphony, National Symphony, and New York Philharmonic, collaborating with conductors such as Boulez, Dutoit, Frühbeck du Burgos, Gilbert, Neeme Järvi, Masur, Nagano, and Rudel. He will make his debut conducting the Montreal Symphony Orchestra in December of 2014.
Dr. Megill is particularly admired for his performances of Baroque choral works. He regularly collaborates with pioneers in the field of historically-informed performance and has conducted many leading period-instrument orchestras.
Dr. Megill has previously served as Music Director of the Masterwork Chorus and Orchestra, Chorusmaster for the Spoleto Festival USA, and Associate Professor at Westminster Choir College. He has been a guest conductor for the Yale Institute of Sacred Music, TENET vocal ensemble, the Juilliard Opera Center, and Emmanuel Music (Boston), and served as interim choirmaster for Trinity Church (Wall Street) in Manhattan.
He has collaborated with the Mark Morris Dance Company, folk singer Judy Collins, puppeteer Basil Twist, and filmmaker Ridley Scott. Recordings of choirs conducted or prepared by Dr. Megill may be heard on the EMI, Canteloupe, Naxos, Albany, and CBC labels.
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