Inviting all high school conducting enthusiasts and future music educators for a day of conducting movement, masterclasses, and music making at Grand Valley State University! Work with college conducting faculty, join a collegiate conducting class, score study during an ensemble rehearsal, and get personal feedback conducting a small chamber ensemble! Participation is open to all high school students of all prior conducting experience levels. Bring a baton if you own one or borrow ours if needed.

Participation cost is $20. Lunch is provided for all participants.

Questions: Email Dr. Joel Schut, Director of Orchestras, [email protected]

Register for Conducting Day

Conducting Day Schedule

Mon, Nov 18, 2024, GVSU Allendale Campus

8:45am – Registration and Check In
9:00 – Movement Lab
10:00 – Introduction to Conducting, MUS 320 College Course Observation
11:00 – Conducting Masterclass
12:00 – Lunch + Campus Mini Tour
1:00 –Score Study, GVSU Symphony Orchestra Dress Rehearsal
2:30 – Debrief Q&A

Repertoire Excerpts

Beethoven Symphony No. 5 Excerpts

MUS 320 Conducting Course Packet

Note: Excerpts will be sent to all participants after registration

Dr. Joel Schut

Joel Schut is the Director of the GVSU Symphony Orchestra and Assistant Professor of Music Education teaching courses in conducting and music education.

Prior to his appointment at GVSU, Schut served as Assistant Director of Orchestral Studies and Instructor of Music Education at the University of Colorado Boulder, interim Director of Orchestras at the Crane School of Music SUNY-Potsdam, led courses in String Music Education at Michigan State University, and taught for seven years in the Michigan public schools including the nationally recognized Okemos High School Orchestras. Additionally he served as director of the Denver Young Artist Conservatory Orchestra. He is an active clinician for all-state, regional, and honor orchestras, and a passionate advocate for public school music programs throughout the country.

As a conductor, he has appeared with the Crane Symphony Orchestra, Michigan State Opera Theatre, Michigan State Symphony Orchestra, and the University of Colorado Boulder Symphony, Philharmonia, and Chamber Orchestras. He served as Music Director of the Livingston Symphony Orchestra, founding director of the Detroit Medical Orchestra, and organizer of the Michigan Teachers Orchestra. He has collaborated with a range of professional artists including Andrés Cárdenas and Ralph Votapek and commissioned works for string and full orchestra.

A dedicated string educator, his research and service include work as a conductor-teacher trainer and advocate for cross-cultural music making. He has presented clinics and workshops on a range of topics and mentored young teachers nationally and internationally. He has worked with multiple engagements in Tunisia and Honduras and served as guest faculty at the Afghanistan Institute of Music. He facilitated a long standing music host exchange connecting German and American young artists and has been a featured artist faculty at the Myanmar Music Festival. A graduate of the YOA Orchestra of the Americas Global Leaders Program, he has served as a program mentor connecting innovators in youth orchestra education throughout the Americas.

Schut is past editor for the American String Teacher Journal and his publications include the Teaching Music Through Performance in Orchestra series (GIA), Southwestern Musician Magazine, and the American String Teacher Journal. He received his Doctorate in Orchestral Conducting from Michigan State University, Masters in Orchestral Conducting from the University of Colorado-Boulder and Bachelors in Violin Performance and Music Education from the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre and Dance where he was awarded the Albert A. Stanley Medal, the school's highest honor.

Dr. Kevin Tutt

Kevin Tutt is the Chair of the Department of Music, Theatre, and Dance. He is also the conductor of the GVSU Wind Symphony and teaches courses in conducting, music education, and general education. 

Prior to his appointment at GVSU, Dr. Tutt held teaching positions at Brandon University, in Brandon, MB, The Pennsylvania State University in University Park, PA, Bucknell University in Lewisburg, PA and the Central Dauphin School District in Harrisburg, PA. He has been a guest conductor, clinician and consultant for all levels of ensembles and public school programs in the United States and Canada.

Dr. Tutt holds degrees in conducting and music education from The Pennsylvania State University. His recent professional interests include: teacher evaluation policies in the arts, the impact of arts advocacy, and the evaluation of Teacher Preparation Institutions. His publications have appeared in the Music Educators Journal, Journal of Band Research, Arts Education Policy Review, Research Perspectives in Music Education, Visions of Research in Music Education and Michigan Music Educator and he has been an invited presenter at regional and national music conferences. 

Minors on Campus

Grand Valley State University is committed to being a safe and healthy environment for all.  This includes students, faculty, staff, and campus visitors, especially those who are minors.  As a public university open to everyone, the University welcomes children and teenagers on our campuses for a variety of programs and activities planned by the University or by outside organizations.  In all situations, adults are expected to be positive role models for minors, acting in a respectful and responsible manner consistent with the mission and values of the University.  To promote this vision, the University publishes and enforces policies, procedures, and guidelines that have the goal of promoting health, safety, and security for minors on our campuses.

If you are a minor (under 18 years of age) and will be attending without a parent or authorized adult, you must fill out the following release forms:

Minors on Campus/COVID-19 Waiver