Meet the Ensemble Directors
Timothy Diem is the assistant director of bands/director of the marching band at the University of Minnesota. He assists in the conducting of all of the University wind groups as well as teaching courses in conducting and music education. He maintains an active schedule as a conductor and clinician throughout the Midwest.
Craig Kirchhoff is professor of conducting and director of bands. He coordinates the graduate program in wind ensemble/band conducting and guides all aspects of the University band program. In addition to his conducting and teaching responsibilities, he maintains an active schedule as a guest conductor and lecturer throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Norway, Australia and Japan.
Jerry Luckhardt is interim director of the School of Music, associate director of bands and conductor of the Symphonic Band. He coordinates the undergraduate conducting program and guides all aspects of the University athletics band program. He is an active clinician and conductor throughout the United States and Europe.
Matthew Mehaffey is associate director of choral activities at the University of Minnesota where he conducts the Concert Choir and the Men’s Chorus and teaches graduate courses in Choral Literature. A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he holds degrees from Bucknell University (BM in Music Education), Westminster Choir College (MM in Choral Conducting) and the University of Arizona (DMA in Choral Conducting and Historical Musicology). Prior to his appointment at the University of Minnesota, Mehaffey served as Director of Choral Activities at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
Alicia Neal currently serves as Assistant Director of Bands and Assistant Director of Athletic Bands at the University of Minnesota. In this position, she assists with the marching and athletic bands, conducts the University Band and teaches undergraduate conducting classes. Originally from Kingwood, Texas, she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Music Education from the University of Colorado before returning to Texas to teach in the public schools. Her Master’s and Doctoral degrees are in Conducting from the University of Colorado and Northwestern University, respectively. Neal’s dissertation, titled Traveling of the Mind: An Interview with Michael Colgrass and an Analysis of “Raag Mala,” represents her most recent research interest in the music and compositional process of the Pulitzer Prize winning American composer.
Kathy Saltzman Romey, director of choral activities, directs the Concert Choir, Men’s Chorus and Women’s Chorus. In addition to her work at the University, Romey serves as the artistic director of the 200-voice Minnesota Chorale. She has prepared the Chorale for performances with both the Minnesota Orchestra and the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra under the baton of such conductors as Edo de Waart, Christopher Hogwood, Hugh Wolff, Bobby McFerrin, and others.
Mark Russell Smith serves as the artistic director of orchestral studies at the University of Minnesota and director of new music projects at the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. As the artistic director of orchestral studies at the University, Smith will serve as artistic director and conductor of the University Symphony Orchestra, mentor graduate-level conducting students, as well as teach undergraduate and graduate courses in orchestral studies. Smith's previous conducting appointments include assistant conductor of the Opera Company of Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Singers; associate conductor of the Phoenix Symphony Orchestra; music director of the Cheyenne Symphony Orchestra and music director of the Springfield (MA) Symphony.
Dean Sorenson is interim director of the jazz studies program. He has played with Mel Torme, Ray Charles, Rosemary Clooney, and many others. He spent two years touring the United States and Japan with the Glenn Miller Orchestra. His compositions are published by the Neil A. Kjos Music Co. and University of Northern Colorado Jazz Press.
David Walsh, associate professor of opera theatre is a native of Toronto, Canada. Walsh has worked as a production stage manager with the Canadian Opera Company, Stratford Festival and the Scottish Opera. He has also worked with the English Music Theatre, English National Opera, Frankfurt Opera, Nederlandse Opera, Brussels Opera, the Royal Opera House (Covent Garden), Santa Fe Opera and Vancouver Opera. He has been a stage director for many productions including Fidelio, L'Incoronazione di Poppea, Il Ritorno d'Ulisse in Patria, Don Giovanni, La Boheme, Madame Butterfly, Salome, The Turn of the Screw, and La Belle Helene.
Last modified on July 2, 2007