As America’s Top Choirs submissions keep rolling in, we continue with our judge spotlight series, this time shining the light over Dr. Jeffrey Benson, another leading choral expert on the panel judging the entries and shortlisting the Top 10 choirs.
Considered one of today’s choral experts, Dr. Jeffrey Benson serves as Director of Choral Activities at San José State University in San José, California. The Washington Post has hailed his choirs for singing “with an exquisite blend, subtlety of phrasing, confident musicianship, and fully supported tone…that would be the envy of some professional ensembles.”
Dr. Benson made his international conducting debut with the Irish Chamber Orchestra and SJSU Choraliers in Limerick, Ireland. He has served as a cover conductor for the Grammy award-winning Washington Chorus, and choirs under his direction have performed with world-renowned artists including the Rolling Stones, Josh Groban, Andrea Bocelli, the Los Angeles Festival Orchestra, and the Skywalker Orchestra.
Dr. Benson is a published composer and arranger with Colla Voce Music and Santa Barbara Music Publishing under the Charlene Archibeque Choral Series. He is also the Artistic Director of Peninsula Cantare, a community chorus based in Palo Alto.
The California National Board Representative of the National Collegiate Choral Organization, Dr. Benson, is an active member of the National Association for Music Education and the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA). The ACDA honored him with the first annual Colleen Kirk Award for outstanding achievement as a young conductor.
Benson received his Masters’s degree and his Doctorate in Choral Conducting/Music Education from Florida State University and his Bachelor’s degree in Music Education from New York University.
To find out more about America’s Got Choirs High School Edition and how to enter, please click here.