Jeffrey Gemmell
jeffrey.gemmell@colorado.edu
Macky Auditorium Room 107
303-492-6403
Mailing Address: 285 UCB, Boulder, CO 80309-0301
Assistant Professor
Interim Director of Choral Studies
Dr. Jeffrey S. Gemmell joined the College of Music faculty at University of Colorado Boulder in 2009 and is currently the Interim Director of Choral Studies. He conducts University Choir, teaches Graduate Choral Symposium and Advanced Choral Conducting, and is the Artistic Director of the annual Holiday Festival concert. His research interests include vocal-choral pedagogy, kinesthetic rehearsal techniques, historic performance practice, music editing, and instructional technology related to choral music. He has been an active member of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) and the Music Educators National Conference (MENC), presenting numerous workshops, presentations and published articles for state organizations in Colorado, Pennsylvania, California, and New York. Currently, he is in the process of editing the choral works of 18th-century composer Georg Feldmayr found in the Oettingen-Wallerstein Collection (Wallerstein, Germany). Those interested in graduate choral research at CU-Boulder should explore our newly launched blog, CU-Boulder Choral Symposium (http://cuchoral.wordpress.com/).
Previously, Dr. Gemmell was Director of Choral Activities and Vocal Music at Millersville University of Pennsylvania where, from 2006 to 2009, he conducted University Choir, Chorale, Marauder Men’s Chorus and Women’s Choir. He also taught studio voice, choral-vocal pedagogy, choral methods, and conducting. He was the founding producer of the Music Department’s scholarship fundraiser, “Glorious Sounds of the Season,” a tradition he began and borrowed from his previous position at California State University, Chico. From 1999 to 2006, Dr. Gemmell held a similar position as Director of Choral Activities (Associate Professor) at Chico State. Under his direction, Chico State choirs participated in regional and national tours, performed each year for the Chico Bach Festival he established with musicologist and organist David Rothe, and worked with such notable choral luminaries as Joseph Jennings (Chanticleer), Paul Hillier (Theater of Voices) and Anonymous 4. The choirs also specialized in performing premieres by contemporary composers and encouraged student composers with regular performances (and eventual publication) of their original works.
Prior to teaching at Chico State, Dr. Gemmell conducted choirs and taught related courses at Ithaca College (1997-99) and Cornell University (sabbatical replacement, 1999) in Ithaca, New York. He received his D.M.A. in the Literature and Performance of Choral Music from University of Colorado Boulder (1997) and, while completing his doctoral work, was a visiting professor at Metropolitan State College of Denver (1995-97), where he taught studio voice, vocal pedagogy and musically directed musicals. Dr. Gemmell holds an MM in Music Education (1988) and an Artist’s Diploma in Voice (1989) from Northwestern University. He completed a BME in Music Education at Towson University (1984) and attended Westminster Choir College in Princeton, New Jersey.
Jeffrey Gemmell spent nearly a decade teaching music at the middle and high school levels before pursuing advanced degrees and college-level teaching. Through his work with such leaders in the field as Lynn Whitten, Larry Kaptein, Joan Conlon, Bennett Reimer, Peter Webster, Richard Alderson, Joseph Flummerfelt, and Frauke Hasseman, Gemmell’s primary research emphasis has been on the development of innovative and creative rehearsal strategies, especially movement-related techniques, to improve singing and artistry. Dr. Gemmell is in high demand as a guest conductor, adjudicator, and clinician.
As a performer, Dr. Gemmell is an accomplished Baritone and studied voice with Ruth Drucker, Norman Gulbrandsen, Alan Seale and Barbara Doscher. Recent solo vocal work has included various recitals and performances of major choral-orchestral works including Brahms’ Requiem, Orff’s Carmina Burana, Vaughan William’s Hodie, Handel’s Messiah, and cantatas by J. S. Bach. In addition, Dr. Gemmell is an experienced Organist and Choir Director and has been a church musician for over three decades.