Associate Professor
Choral Studies
Music Education
Contact Information
Cogswell Hall 111
Courses Taught
University Chorale
Chamber Choir
General and Choral Methods
Introduction to Music Education
Psychology of Music Learning
Administration and Advocacy in Music Education
Pre-Service Student Teaching 2
Degrees
PhD, University of Miami
MM, Westminster Choir College
BM, Houghton College
Biography
Craig Denison is director of Choirs and associate professor of Choral Music/Music Education. Prior to coming to IUP, he taught and conducted youth and children’s choirs for nearly 30 years. During that time, Denison prepared choirs for numerous international orchestras, opera companies, and premieres of new works. Much of that work was in his role as conductor of the American Boychoir, Colorado Children’s Chorale, and Florida’s Singing Sons. He founded the Schola Cantorum at Westminster Choir College as assistant professor of conducting. As a school teacher, Denison taught for many years at Saint Mark’s Episcopal School, Fort Lauderdale, as director of vocal music.
In summer 2020, Denison presented at the Modern Band Summit, and in summer 2019 he presented, workshopped, and adjudicated at the China International Chorus Festival in Beijing. He regularly conducts state and regional honor choirs. In recent years, this has included choirs in Louisiana, Colorado, Georgia, West Virginia, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Florida. Recent scholarship work includes the presentation of a long paper at the Symposium on Research in Choral Singing at Northwestern University and several sessions at the National Conference on Children and Youth Singing. His recent publications include a feature article in Choral Journal and a chapter in the Oxford Handbook of Choral Pedagogy.
In collaboration with the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association and the Pennsylvania Department of Education, he serves as university representative on the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s Modern Band Implementation. He also served as state advisor for the Pennsylvania Collegiate Music Educators Association and National Chair of Repertoire and Resource in Boychoir for the American Choral Directors Association, where he is founder and director of the National Symposium on Boychoir.
Denison has prepared young singers for numerous opera productions, including The Magic Flute, The Turn of the Screw, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Carmen, La Boheme, Turandot, Tosca, Summer and Smoke, Hansel and Gretel, Amahl and the Night Visitors, Street Scene, and Gloriana with opera companies as diverse as Central City Opera to Los Angeles Opera to Florida Grand Opera. He has prepared choirs and soloists for the New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, Cleveland Symphony, New World Symphony, Colorado Symphony, Berlin Philharmonic, and the BBC Proms. His television and movie work includes Dexter and Interview with the Vampire.
Denison earned his PhD in music education from the University of Miami. He holds a master of music degree with distinction from Rider University’s Westminster Choir College and a bachelor of music degree from Houghton College, magna cum laude.