“The folks who I think are really doing incredible work around the world, not just for one festival or for one tour, but for decades, are the folks who are trying to literally make the world a better place through choral music. How many opportunities can we provide for them so they can feel like they're part of that bigger family to help legitimize the hard work and the experiences that they're having in their corner of the world?”

T. J. HARPER is Associate Professor of Music and Specialist in Choral Music Performance, Choral Pedagogy, Conducting, and Vocal Performance at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California. Choirs under the direction of Dr. Harper have performed at Carnegie Hall in 2022, NAfME division and national conferences, ACDA conferences, and International performances by invitation including Costa Rica, Austria, Czech Republic, Spain, and Italy.

Dr. Harper maintains an active schedule in the US and abroad as a guest conductor, clinician, and jury member. Recent engagements include headlining the China National Choral Conference and conducting the Beijing Harmonia Choir; Master classes for El Sistema and conducting the Venezuela National Choir.

He has been engaged as a lecturer, presenter, and guest speaker at the 2015 Yale University International Choral Music Symposium; the 2015 European Choir Games in Magdeburg, Germany; Harvard University, Hofstra University, and the New England ACDA Collegiate Choral Conference.

Dr. Harper is the Associate Director for the Jeju International Choral Festival in Jeju, South Korea, Associate Director for the Icheon World Choral Festival in Icheon, South Korea, the Associate Director for the San Juan Canta Choral Festival and Competition in San Juan, Argentina, the Associate Director for the World Youth Choir Festival and Competition in Jeju, South Korea.

Dr. Harper recently held positions as Board Member for the International Federation of Choral Music (IFCM), the past Chair of the ACDA Standing Committee on International Activities, and the Director of the ACDA International Conductors Exchange Program (ICEP).

Dr. Harper received the Doctor of Musical Arts (D.M.A.) from the University of Southern California, his Master of Arts in Choral Conducting from California State University, Northridge and his B.A. in Choral Conducting from California State University, Fresno.

To get in touch with T. J., you can find him on Instagram (@conductortj) or Facebook (@harper.tj).

Choir Fam wants to hear from you! Check out the Minisode Intro Part 3 episode from February 16, 2024, to hear how to share your story with us.

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“I haven’t moved exclusively to doing multicultural music in our classroom, but I have done a lot of music that has a positive message that they can relate to. If this song has nothing to do with them, no matter how much I love it, no matter how epic or famous this is, the students will have a hard time connecting to it. I’m not saying that everything needs to be in English or be immediately accessible or understandable, but I do think there needs to be something in there that connects to their lives.”

Matthew Chi Lee is in his 9th year as director of choirs at John P. Stevens (JPS) High School in Edison, New Jersey. He is a native of Edison and holds degrees in music education from Northwestern University and Florida State University. Recently, the John P. Stevens High School Chamber Choir has performed at the 2024 ACDA National Conference as well as the 2023 ACDA Eastern Conference. He serves on the New Jersey ACDA Board as High School Youth Choirs R&R Chair and the NJMEA Choral Procedures Board. Matt also serves as the assistant conductor at Christ Church in Summit, NJ. He has been invited to be a guest conductor and clinician in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut. As a chorister he has performed in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and the South of France. His Independent Study Project at FSU focused on Multicultural Choral Music and Culturally Responsive Pedagogy in the high school choir program, and he is interested in selecting repertoire that highlights living composers as well as the diverse musical traditions of the world.

To get in touch with Matt, you can find him on Instagram (@matthewchileemusic) or Facebook (@matthewchileemusic). You can also visit his school choir's website, jpschoir.org.

Choir Fam wants to hear from you! Check out the Minisode Intro Part 3 episode from February 16, 2024, to hear how to share your story with us.

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“From my first ACDA in 1991 to ACDA now: complete reversal. People are not afraid to perform something that moves the soul, and in 1991 nobody did it. Now people are digging in and not being afraid. I applaud all of my fellow choral conductors for being fearless and not being afraid to tell the stories that mean something.”

Tim Seelig is a conductor, singer, speaker and educator. He continues a busy schedule of appearances across the U.S. He conducted LGBTQ+ choruses for 35 years and is Conductor Laureate of the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus and Conductor Emeritus of the Turtle Creek Chorale.

Dr. Seelig holds four degrees, including the Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of North Texas and the Diploma from the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria. He has written 6 books on choral technique, several of which are best-sellers, and his memoir, Tale of Two Tims: Big Ol’ Baptist, Big Ol’ Gay.

Dr. Seelig has conducted at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center for 25 years. He conducted the Guinness Book Of World Record's Longest Choral Concert and carried the Olympic torch in 1996 as a community Hero.

He has conducted over 50 recordings which have been on Billboard Top Ten and iTunes Top Ten classical charts. His choruses have been the topic of three documentaries. The PBS documentary, After Goodbye: An AIDS Story was awarded the national Emmy for best documentary.

He is the proud grandfather of the amazing Clara Skye, Eden Mae, Cora Rose, Ivy Hope.

To get in touch with Tim, you can find him on Facebook (@tim.seelig) or email him at tgseelig@gmail.com.

Choir Fam wants to hear from you! Check out the Minisode Intro Part 3 episode from February 16, 2024, to hear how to share your story with us.

Email choirfampodcast@gmail.com to contact our hosts.

Podcast music from Podcast.co
Photo in episode artwork by Trace Hudson