Sean Taylor, D.M.A., formerly of Brookville, has been appointed music director of the Berkshire Choral International, succeeding Frank Nemhauser, who retired after 38 years at BCI. Taylor has served as a BCI faculty member for the last decade and began there as an apprentice 17 years ago.
In this new role, Taylor will lead BCI’s renowned chorister education at all in-person programs, oversee artistic administrative duties, and supervise both music faculty and BCI’s acclaimed apprentice program. This summer he will travel to Denver in July and to Vienna, Austria, in August, where BCI will perform at the famed Golden Hall of the Musikverein.
Berkshire Chorale International is based in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, and over the past 40 years has enriched the lives of almost 9,000 singers through its week-long choral music programs under the batons of dozens of the world’s great conductors, in prestigious venues throughout the U.S. and Europe. As an inclusive home for people who love to sing, BCI celebrates and connects the worldwide choral music world. In addition to serving amateur choral singers, BCI also has a rich history of supporting and training early career choral professionals. Its apprentice program provides free tuition and travel support to undergraduate and graduate level vocalists, conductors, and accompanists as well as the opportunity to study and coach with internationally-recognized faculty and guest conductors.
Taylor began his musical career at Brookville Area High School, performing in the concert choir and in the school’s acclaimed full-length musicals including “Singing in the Rain,” in which he filled the lead role in his senior year. He later attended Westminster College for his undergraduate education, received a Master’s degree at Carnegie-Mellon University, and the Doctorate of Musical Arts from the Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music.
He now makes his home in Brownsville, Texas, where he is Associate Professor of Music and Director of Choral Studies at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, where he conducts the Master Chorale and Chamber Singers. Taylor is also conductor of the Valley Symphony Orchestra Chorale in McAllen, Texas, is artistic director of Alium Spiritum, a vocal quartet based in Brownsville, and director of traditional music at First Methodist Church in Harlingen.
He is the son of David Taylor, of Brookville, and the late Linda Taylor, who was a noted educator in Brookville for many years. Sean’s wife, Diane, is also on the UTRGV music faculty and they are the parents of a 4-year-old daughter, Cecilia, not surprisingly named for the patron saint of music.
Both Sean and Diane will perform in Brookville with Alium Spiritum in a concert at the historic Presbyterian Church on Saturday, July 27.
