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The American choral conductor and music pedagogue,
Paul Laprade, obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree in Music Education from Rhode Island College; his Master of Arts degree in Music Theory and Composition from Eastman School of Music; and his Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting and Music Education from Westminster Choir College. He Laprade studied choral conducting under Joseph Flummerfelt, Allen Crowell, Donald Neuen, and in seminars and workshops with Robert Shaw.
Paul Laprade conducts the Schola Cantorum (Januar-February 2018), Swinging Saints (Spring 2020), and Claritas Master Chorale. His choirs have performed at the White House for Presidents Clinton, Bush, and Obama, and recently have sung for the PBS-awarding winning ensemble, “The Tenors.” In addition to his work as a teacher and conductor, he is an active member of NAfME, Chorus America, and ACDA, for which is he proud to serve the the Executive Board of Illinois ACDA. His articles and reviews have appeared in several journals, including The Journal of Music Theory, Theoria, and The Choral Journal. He has also presented papers for the Pennsylvania Music Educators’ Association, IMEA, and for national conventions of ACDA, Society for Music Theory, and American Musicological Association. He is frequently sought out as a clinician, adjudicator, and guest conductor; he is active as a composer and arranger of music for high school, college, and professional choirs.
Paul Laprade has served as Professor In Music and Director of Choral Activities and Music Director/Conductor of ElysianVoices at Rock Valley College Rockford, Illinois (2003-2017); Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities at Department Chair, Music and Performing Arts at University of St. Francis Joliet, Illinois (since 2017). He was the recipient of teaching awards from the Eastman School of Music (2008), and from Rock Valley College (Faculty of the Year, 2017). In the upcoming year (2020), he will be presenting papers at IMEC (“Reconsidering Rhythmic Solfege”, January 2020), appearing as guest conductor for the Big Northern Festival (January 2020), conducting the joint work for the Illinois Two-Year Choral Festival (March 2020), and will be a featured speaker at the International Conference for New Dimensions in the Humanities (Venice, Italy) in June 2020.
Paul Laprade is currently the Music Director at Second Congregational UCC/First Presbyterian Church of Rockford, Illinoisa (since September 2006: Conductor, performer, composer/arranger). The lights and loves of his life are his sons, Nathaniel and Jonathan. |
