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The American choral conductor, music pedagogue and tenor singer, Joshua C. Habermann, is a graduate of Georgetown University (Class of 1990) and the University of Texas at Austin (Class of 1997), where he completed doctoral studies in conducting with Craig Hella Johnson.
From 1996 to 2008, Joshua Habermann was assistant conductor of the San Francisco Symphony Chorus, and Professor of Music at San Francisco State University, where under his direction the SFSU Chamber Singers received international engagements in Havana, Cuba, and undertook concert tours in Germany, Czech Republic, and China. National invitations include the Waging Peace Festival in Eugene, Oregon, multiple appearances at the California Music Educators Convention, and a performance at the American Choral Directors’ Association regional convention in 2008.
From 2008 to 2011, Joshua Habermann was Director of Choral Studies at the University of Miami Frost School of Music, where he led the graduate program in conducting, and directed the Frost Chorale. Notable projects in Miami included an appearance at the Florida ACDA convention and collaborations with the New World Symphony and conductor Michael Tilson Thomas in music of Charles Ives, Schubert and L.v. Beethoven. During this same period he led the Masterchorale of South Florida in performances of masterworks such as Felix Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Haydn’s Creation, and W.A. Mozart’s Requiem.
From 2011 to 2022, Joshua Habermann was director of the Dallas Symphony Chorus, the official vocal ensemble of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, where he prepared the 200-voice chorus for classical and pops concerts. Highlights with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra include J.S. Bach’s Matthäus-Passion BWV 244, Verdi’s Requiem, Berlioz’s Te Deum, Edward Elgarʻs Dream of Gerontius, Leonard Bernsteinʻs Kaddish Symphony, and Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem, which was performed for the ACDA national convention in 2013. Recent international collaborations include Leonard Bernstein's Chichester Psalms, and Maurice Duruflé's Requiem with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, and choral/orchestral performances with the DSC in Spain, France, Sweden, Estonia and Finland.
Joshua Habermann is in his 16th season as Artistic Director of the Santa Fe Desert Chorale (since 2009), one of the nation’s premiere professional chamber choirs. Since joining the ensemble, he has broadened its repertoire to include not only a cappella literature but also choral-orchestral masterworks and unique concert experiences that combine music, images, poetry and the spoken word, such as such as Dancing the Mystery, a fusion of music and poetry created for the National Conference of the American Choral Directors Association.
Joshua Habermann is a frequent clinician for state and national events, and has led honor choirs and choral festivals in North and Latin America, Europe and Asia. As a singer (tenor) he has performed with the Oregon Bach Festival Chorus (Eugene, Oregon), and Conspirare (Austin, Texas). Recording credits include three projects with Conspirare: "Through the Green Fuse", "Requiem", a Grammy nominee for best choral recording in 2006, and "Threshold of Night", a Grammy nominee for best choral recording and best classical album in 2009.
Since moving with his family to Honolulu, Joshua Habermann was named Artistic Director of the Oʻahu Choral Society, and led the ensemble’s post-pandemic return to singing in performances of Mozart and Sibelius works with the Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra. A passionate advocate for music education, he continues to teach graduate choral literature classes at the University of North Texas, and serves on the choral faculty for the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.
Joshua Habermann currently lives in Honolulu with his wife Joanna, daughter Kira, and son Kai. |
