KAREN KENNEDY
Choral Conductor
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Praised by the San Francisco Classical Voice for her “wizardry with voices” and named by the Honolulu Star Bulletin as “ . . . a popular and charismatic leader,” Karen Kennedy currently holds the position of Director of Choirs at Towson University. Before joining the faculty at Towson, she held the positions of Chorus Director for the Honolulu Symphony, Artistic Director for the Hawai`i International Choral Festival, and Director of Choral Activities at the University of Hawai`i at Manoa. A recipient of the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in choral music from Arizona State University, Dr. Kennedy also received a Master of Music in choral conducting from Butler University and a Bachelor of Music Education from DePauw University.
During her time in Hawai`i, Dr. Kennedy regularly conducted the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, most recently in performances of Orff's Carmina Burana, Durufle’s Requiem, Mozart’s Great Mass in C Minor, Mozart’s Requiem, and Rutter’s Gloria. She has conducted the New England Symphonic Ensemble and a 200-voice festival chorus in a Carnegie Hall performance of Mozart’s Vesperae Solennes de Confessore. She also enjoyed a residency at Stanford University as Conductor for the Stanford University Summer Chorus Festival. In addition, she is well known as a choral clinician and adjudicator, regularly working with Gateway Music Festivals and Heritage Music Tours. She is also a popular honor choir clinician, having served as conductor of All-State and Regional/County Honor Choirs in Minnesota, Oregon, Hawai`i, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Maryland.
In addition to regular podium performances Dr. Kennedy enjoys the opportunity to present workshops on choral repertoire, conducting, choral pedagogy and vocal pedagogy. Her workshops have been a part of recent ACDA and MENC regional and state conventions, most recently in Connecticut, Oregon, Maryland, and Hawai`i
Dr. Kennedy has received numerous awards for teaching, including the University of Hawai`i Chancellor’s Citation for Meritorious Teaching, Arizona State University’s Manzanita “Top Prof” Award, Butler University’s Faculty Distinction Award, and is a two-time recipient of the Lawrence Township Schools Superintendent’s Award.
Dr. Kennedy is a past-President of the Hawai`i chapter of the American Choral Directors Association, and is currently serving on the Maryland chapter state board as Collegiate Repertoire and Standards Chair. She is an active member of Chorus America, and is a founding member of the National Collegiate Choral Organization, where she currently represents the state of Maryland. |
Honolulu Symphony Chorus • Oahu Choral Society
650 Iwilei Road, Suite 202
Honolulu, Hawai'i 96817
tel: (808) 524-0815 ext. 257
e-mail: symphonychorus@honolulusymphony.com