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The American choral conductor, organist and pianist, Matthew Phelps, studied at Wright State University; and finished his Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in conducting from the College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati. During his studes there he was Graduate Teaching Assistant. He studied conducting with Earl Rivers, Mark Gibson, and Stephen Coker. He has studied organ with Jerry Taylor, Thom Miles, Matthew Lewis, and Michael Unger.
Matthew Phelps worked extensively in New York City and Cincinnati before arriving in Nashville, and his choirs have performed at regional conventions of MENC and ACDA. He won the 2015 American Prize in Choral Conducting and has placed in performance competitions as an organist and pianist. Hhe served as Director of Music at Saint Aloysius Gonzaga Church (August 2002-August 2008); Former Founder and Artistic Director at Voce di Donne (September 2005-June 2008); Adjunct Professor at Xavier University (August 2006-August 2008; taught Music Now and developing a new course on the history of Musical Theater); Minister of Music at Reformed Church of Bronxville, New York (Music Director, organist, conductor); Adjunct Faculty at Xavier University (Conduct the concert choir, coach opera workshop, teacher); Director of Music at Assumption Catholic Church Mt. Healthy Ohio.
In 2014, Matthew Phelps moved to Nashville. Currently he is the Minister of Music at West End United Methodist Church in Nashville, Tennessee. At West End, he conducts the nationally renowned West End United Methodist Chancel Choir on a weekly basis and performs major concerts with orchestra. This season, he led the WEUM Chancel Choir in performances of Georg Philipp Telemann, Arvo Pärt, and Gabriel Fauré, while also preparing the choir for a Hymn Festival featuring guest artist Tom Trenney. At West End, he oversees a multi-faceted music department that includes two adult choirs, four choirs for children and youth, and two handbell choirs. As an organist, he is one of two organists on staff who plays the 136 rank Moller organ: the largest organ in Tennessee.
Under his direction, the WEUM Chancel Choir has been recognized throughout Nashville for its excellence. Of West End's Christmas Concerts, the Nashville Scene wrote: "In a season overloaded with dedicated repertoires, West End United Methodist Church reaches beyond the standard hymns and carols for an afternoon of festive selections that skirt Christmas norms." He led the WEUM Chancel Choir at the 2020 Southeastern regional convention of the American Choral Director's Association in Mobile, Alabama, in a performance of the music of Dan Forrest. His performances have been described as "beautifully prepared" (Mary Ellen Hutton, Cincinnati Post), "beautifully shaped" (David Katz, Chief Judge of the American Prize), and "moving and deeply meaningful." (Walter Bitner Nashville Symphony Orchestra)
Matthew Phelps is also the founder and Artistic Director of the professional chamber choir Vocal Arts Nashville (since 2016). In their 7th season, the ensemble has performed music ranging from the Renaissance to the modern-day, including Nashville's first performance of all six J.S. Bach motets and premieres by local composers. They have performed with Nashville Symphony and the Chiftens and released their first album, "O Love, the Music of Elaine Hagenberg" this past spring. Additionally, he is the artistic director of Collegium Cincinnati, a professional choral and instrumental ensemble in Cincinnati specializing in early and contemporary music. A regular guest conductor, Matthew Phelps made his Nashville Ballet debut conducting Peter Salem's A Streetcar Named Desire and is a regular conductor with the Nashville Concerto Orchestra and the Mozart Birthday Festival Orchestra.
An active organ recitalist, Matthew Phelps has played in churches around the country including St. Mary the Virgin, St. Francis Xavier in Manhattan, Westminster Presbyterian in Dayton, Ohio, and Christ Church Cathedral in Cincinnati. And his premiere of Trumpets of Light, written for him by Dan Locklair, was broadcast on NPR’s Pipedreams. He is also one of the most sought after pianists in the Nashville region. He has performed as a soloist with the Nashville Concerto Orchestra, Intersection, and is a founding member of the Elliston Trio with violinist Erin Hall and cellist Keith Nicholas, he has performed chamber music recitals in venues throughout Nashville and nationally. He is also well regarded as a solo recitalist of contemporary music, including performances of Frederic Rezewski's The People United Will Never be Defeated and his last major work, Ages, of which the composer specifically asked Phelps to create a new edition.
Matthew Phelps has served on the faculty of Lipscomb University, where he taught theory and church music courses. He will be a guest artist at Vanderbilt University in the fall of 2023, where he will conduct the concert choir and teach conducting. He lives in Bellevue with his wife Colleen and son Noah and is an avid chef and chess player. |
