John F. Warren

Biography

John F. Warren is professor of music and director of choral activities at Syracuse University, where he conducts choirs and teaches both graduate and undergraduate courses in conducting, choral literature and rehearsal techniques.

During his 15-year tenure, Syracuse choirs have performed at two state and three Eastern Region American Choral Director Association (ACDA) Conferences, including Rochester, New York, in 2020, and toured throughout the Northeast United States, Canada, Europe and South America. In 2017, the Syracuse University Singers performed for the National Conference of the National Collegiate Choral Organization in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. In 2015, the Syracuse University Singers won the Grand Prix at the Florilegé Vocal de Tours in France, which entitled them to compete in Varna, Bulgaria, in May 2016 as a finalist in the European Grand Prix for Choral Singing. Warren traveled back to Varna to judge the 2017 International Choir Competition. The choir’s first album, “Mysteries and Wonders,” is available on iTunes and Amazon. Warren is a regular guest conductor with Symphoria, the professional orchestra of Syracuse, New York, having most recently conducted a program of music by J. S. Bach, C.P.E. Bach and Mahler.

He was the New York ACDA Choral Director of the Year in 2016 and is a 2011 recipient of the Outstanding Faculty Award from the College of Visual and Performing Arts at Syracuse University. Prior to coming to Syracuse, Warren was the director of choral activities at Erskine College in South Carolina, where he was awarded the Younts Excellence in Teaching Award in 2005.

Warren serves ACDA on the Standing Committee on International Activities and is New York ACDA vice president. Warren has lectured, adjudicated and conducted festival choirs throughout the Eastern United States, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cuba and France. He has published research in the Choral Journal and the International Choral Bulletin.

Education

• D.M.A., University of Miami
• M.M., University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music
• B.M., Furman University

Areas of Expertise

Choral conducting, choral music