Jacob Harrison

Jacob Harrison has accepted an appointment at Texas State University as Associate Professor of Conducting and the new Director of the Texas State Symphony Orchestra. He will also conduct major student opera productions.

Dr. Harrison holds both the Doctoral of Musical Arts degree in Orchestral Conducting and the Master of Music Education degree from Arizona State University. He earned his Bachelor of Music Performance degree from the University of Texas at Austin. He comes to Texas State from Iowa State University, where he served as the director of orchestral activities and taught advanced conducting. In 2014, Dr. Harrison received two awards for his teaching at ISU, the Early Achievement in Teaching and the Shakeshaft Master Teacher award.

A sought-after conductor, clinician, and educator, Dr. Harrison is a regular guest conductor with professional orchestras, honor ensembles, and music festivals throughout the country. This past December, Dr. Harrison returned to Phoenix to again lead performances of The Nutcracker with Ballet Arizona and the Phoenix Symphony and has been reengaged to return for December 2018. He has also been repeatedly engaged as a guest conductor with the Chattanooga Symphony and Opera. In recent years, he has worked with orchestras in Arizona, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Tennessee, Texas, and Wisconsin. Dr. Harrison was regularly invited to clinic high school orchestra programs across the state of Iowa.

Dr. Harrison is equally at home conducting opera and music theater as he is conducting contemporary music and the great symphonic literature. He made his opera conducting debut in Arizona with the Lyric Opera’s production of Bartok’s Bluebeard’s Castle. He has conducted productions of Bernstein’s Candide, Mozart’s Magic Flute, and Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd.