The Choral Conducting program is an elite program limited to a maximum of ten graduate students each year. Study focuses on the awareness of repertoire from all historical eras, with attention to performance practice considerations. Upon completion of the program, students will be well versed in a broad repertoire and fully conversant with genres, composers and representatives. Each choral conducting student will receive conducting experience with university ensembles and orchestras. In addition, candidates will be involved in major research and will be active in the pursuit of knowledge of current trends, techniques, procedures and historical data.
Master's candidates perform one recital and are responsible for no final paper. Doctoral candidates perform three recitals and write a major document. Doctoral candidates may and often do perform more recitals than are required. Well prepared for a professional career in music performance or music education/research, many of OU's graduates currently hold significant conducting and teaching positions throughout the country.
The graduate program in instrumental conducting at OU is designed to train conductors for successful professional and academic careers. Enrollment is kept low to afford students a maximum of hands-on conducting experience. A first-rate academic department provides young conductors with essential training in music history and theory. Students can expect training and experience in all important areas of conducting- orchestral, operatic, period-style and new music.
Office: Catlett Music Center 116G
Email: bbritt@ou.edu
Phone: (405) 325-2731
Brian A. Britt has served communities and universities in Oklahoma and Texas as a band director and fine arts administrator for the last 32 years. Currently, Professor Britt is the Associate Dean of Fine Arts, Director of Athletic Bands, and holds the Gene Braught Chair in Music at The University of Oklahoma. He is Director of “The Pride of Oklahoma Marching Band” and conducts the OU Boomer Campus Band. As Associate Dean, Professor Britt is responsible for special projects within the Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts.
Under Professor Britt’s leadership, The “Pride of Oklahoma” Marching Band has appeared in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City and has twice appeared in the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, CA. The “Pride” has appeared at 21 bowl games bowl games under his direction: Cotton Bowl (2), Rose Bowl (2), Orange Bowl (4) Fiesta Bowl (3), Sugar Bowl (2), Holiday Bowl, Sun Bowl, Insight Bowl, and Russell Athletic Bowl, with six of these appearances occurring in conjunction with BCS National Championship games or the College Football Playoff. In spring of 2017, the “Pride of Oklahoma” Marching Band was selected as one featured ensembles for the CBDNA Athletic Band Forum in conjunction with the CBDNA National Convention in Kansas City, MO.
Professor Britt is active nationally as a guest conductor, clinician, adjudicator, lecturer, and consultant. He has presented sessions and served on panel discussions at the Oklahoma Music Educators Association State Convention, the Texas Music Educators Association State Convention, the CBDNA National Convention, and the CBDNA National Athletic Band Symposium. As a conductor, Professor Britt maintains an active schedule conducting All-State and All-Region bands throughout the southwest. Professor Britt recently collaborated with the OU Wind Symphony, recording David Biedenbender’s “Luminescence” to be included on their soon to be released professional CD recording.
Professor Britt’s previous teaching and administrative experiences have included positions at Richardson ISD, Round Rock ISD, Stephen F. Austin State University, Garland ISD, Texas Christian University, Chickasha (OK) Public Schools, and Norman (OK) Public Schools.
Professor Britt earned both his Bachelor of Music Education and Master of Music (percussion) degrees from the University of Oklahoma. His professional associations include the Oklahoma Music Educators Association, Oklahoma Bandmasters Association, Phi Beta Mu, Pi Kappa Lambda, Kappa Kappa, Psi, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, Tau Beta Sigma (honorary), and Kiwanis International. He and his wife Alicia have one daughter, Avery. All three are active members at McFarlin Memorial United Methodist Church in Norman, OK.
Email: lfolds@ou.edu
Office: Catlett Music Center 119
Phone: (405) 325-2731
Lane A. Folds has been an educator for 15 years, teaching instrumental music & music educator instruction in both Oklahoma and Texas. His band experience includes corps & military march styles, small ensembles, 6th-12th grade concert bands, and the New Horizons ensembles. His collegiate experience consists of instrumental technique instruction, assisting instrumental methods, supervising student teachers, and leading student teacher seminar.
Mr. Folds is an active educator and scholar, presenting at state and national level conferences, including recently at the 10th Biennial Colloquium for Instrumental Music Teacher Educators (IMTE). His professional affiliations include the Oklahoma Music Educators Association, Oklahoma Bandmasters Association, Instrumental Music Teacher Educators, Society for Music Teacher Education, National Association for Music Education, Music Teacher Educators ASPA, Kappa Kappa Psi, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia.
Mr. Folds earned his Bachelor of Music Education and Bachelor of Music Performance degrees from Southwestern Oklahoma State University, and his Master of Music Education from the University of Oklahoma where he is currently in his third year of the Ph.D. program in Music Education with emphasis in Instrumental Conducting.
Office: Catlett Music Center 127G
Email: jabarie.glass@ou.edu
Jabarie Glass is a conductor and educator whose experience spans university, secondary, community, festival, and church choral settings. He currently serves as Director of Choral Activities in the School of Music at the University of Oklahoma, where he conducts the OU Chorale and oversees the graduate choral conducting program. Known for his dynamic leadership and compelling programming, Glass brings a steadfast commitment to musical excellence, collaboration, and inclusive practice to every ensemble he leads. Choirs under his direction have been featured at the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) Southern Region Conference, the Mississippi-ACDA Conference, and the South Carolina Music Educators Association Conference.
In addition to his passion for conducting works from the choral-orchestral repertory, he is a fervent advocate for new music, dedicated to enriching the choral canon by commissioning and premiering works that embrace diverse artistic perspectives. He has presented interest sessions at regional and national conferences of the American Choral Directors Association, led conducting masterclasses, and published in The Choral Journal. He remains deeply engaged in the musical development of young choral artists by conducting honor choirs and all-state ensembles across the United States. Recent engagements include conducting the ACDA Southwestern Region 10-12 Mixed Choir; all-state choirs in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Wisconsin; as well as regional honor choirs in Oklahoma and Tennessee. He also holds leadership positions in professional choral organizations, having served as the Student Activities Coordinator for the ACDA Southern Region and as a member of the National Board for the National Collegiate Choral Organization.
A native Mississippian, Glass earned dual bachelor's degrees in business management and music education from the University of Mississippi, where he was inducted into the University's Student Hall of Fame, an honor awarded to ten seniors annually for exemplary leadership, scholarship, and service. He went on to earn a master's degree in music education from the Florida State University College of Music and a doctoral degree in conducting from the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance. He also pursued additional conducting studies as a fellow with the Chorus America Conducting Academy and the Yale-Norfolk Chamber Music Festival Choral Conducting Workshop.
Email: cehand@ou.edu
Office: Catlett Music Center 116I
Phone: (405) 325-3827
Hailing from Tahlequah, Oklahoma, Caroline Hand believes ensemble music making enhances skills that lead to a meaningful life while establishing connections amongst musicians and audiences. Dr. Hand facilitates these skills and connections by conducting the University of Oklahoma Wind Symphony, teaching conducting courses for undergraduate and graduate students, and offering music program consultations and clinics for schools in the region.
Dr. Hand is in demand as a guest conductor across the region and nation with numerous honor band appearances, most recently as the guest conductor for the South Dakota All-State and Intercollegiate Bands and Oklahoma South Central Directors Association All-Region Band. An avid supporter of community engagement through music, Dr. Hand spearheaded the Sensory Friendly Concert Series in the University of Oklahoma School of Music. Her recent presentations at the Midwest Clinic and Oklahoma Music Educators Association Conference have focused on no-cost ways to enhance student learning through long-term planning strategies. She has also presented on engaged teaching methods such as the Orpheus Project and facilitating high impact collaborations with university music ensembles. Dr. Hand is dedicated to well-rounded programming aimed at exposing her students to a wide array of styles, composers, and historical periods all with the aim of communicating to the listener.
Dr. Hand previously held the position of associate director of bands at Ball State University and taught public school in Mountain Home, AR and Tyler, TX ISD. She earned degrees from the University of Minnesota (DMA conducting), Baylor University (MM band conducting), and Oklahoma State University (BME).
Dr. Hand is pleased to offer musical help of any kind to secondary music teachers. Please reach out via email!
Office: Catlett Music Center 127H
Email: dhoward@ou.edu
Website: thedavidhoward.com
David Howard is Associate Director of Choral Activities at the University of Oklahoma where he conducts the OU Glee Club and the OU Vox Lyrica. He also teaches graduate and undergraduate choral literature and choral conducting in addition to coordinating the annual OU Vocal Workshop. His collegiate choirs, civic choruses, opera choruses, church choirs, secondary school choirs and festival choirs in the United States and Europe have been hailed for their artistry. The OU Women’s Chorus performed by invitation at the Oklahoma Music Educators Association annual conference in 2018 and 2024. Their album Voces in Concordia is available on all streaming services. The OU Men’s Glee Club’s album of OU spirit songs, Fight for OKU: The Legendary OU Men’s Glee Club is also available on all streaming services. Both choirs recently released a second album Septemundos.
Dr. Howard is the founder and artistic director Schola Cantorum Oklahoma, a professional choral ensemble dedicated to the performance of early music. Schola Cantorum Oklahoma has performed the complete Triumphs of Oriana (1601), Charpentier’s Messe de minuit pour Noël, H.9 (1694), a program of the music of Hapsburg Spain, and two concerts with the Oklahoma Baroque Orchestra: “Venetian Holiday: Music of Monteverdi, Gabrieli, Legrenzi, and Schütz,” and “A Concert Spirituel: Music of Rameau, Delalande, and Lully.” Upcoming concerts will feature early Baroque music from the French court and Roland de Lassus’s Psalmi Davidis Poentitentiales (1584).
Equally at home as a baritone soloist, Dr. Howard has performed nationally and internationally in oratorio and cantata presentations, and as a recitalist. Recent performances include Schubert’s Winterreise, D. 911 with pianist Igor Lipinski, Brahms’s Ein deutsches Requiem, Op. 45 with the Tulsa Chorale and Orchestra, and Handel’s Messiah with the Bartlesville Chorale and Orchestra. His commercial album of sacred music for voice, piano, and harp, entitled Consecration, on the Blue Griffin Records label, is available through streaming services.
Dr. Howard’s scholarly articles have appeared in the British academic music journal, Musical Times, and in The Choral Journal and ChorTeach. Moreover, his performing editions and choral arrangements are published by Alliance Music Publications. He has presented on a range of topics at national conferences including the American Choral Directors Association, the Texas Music Educators Association, and the Kansas Music Educators Association.
He holds the Bachelor of Music Education degree and Master of Music degree in vocal performance from the University of Central Oklahoma and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in choral conducting from Michigan State University.
Office: Catlett Music Center 127D
Email: jshames@ou.edu
Dr. Jonathan Shames is Director of Orchestral Studies, Music Director and Conductor of the OU Symphony and Artistic Director and Conductor of OU Opera Theater. His previous positions included the music directorships of the Wyoming Symphony; the Olympia (Washington) Symphony; and the Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestras and its Marrowstone Music Festival. He came to OU from the University of Michigan, where he was Associate Director of Orchestras and directed the University Philharmonia and Contemporary Directions Ensemble.
Shames' work as musical assistant to Sarah Caldwell of the Opera Company of Boston (at age 19) led to his first conducting opportunities, when Caldwell invited him to lead performances of Puccini's Girl of the Golden West and Mozart's Don Giovanni. Since that time, he has frequently been associated with the company, leading several tours and Boston performances. Shames has performed with the Clermont-Ferrand (France) Conservatoire Orchestra, the Reno Chamber Orchestra, Louisiana Philharmonic, Richmond Symphony, Sewanee Festival and Pine Mountain Festival Symphony Orchestras. His performance of Anthony Brandt's opera The Birth of Something, with the Houston-based ensemble Musiqa, appears on Albany Records.
As a pianist, since winning a finalist diploma in the 1982 Moscow International Tchaikovsky Competition, Shames has performed in France, Finland, South Korea, and Russia, as well as across the U.S. Together with his wife, pianist Stephanie Leon Shames, he founded and served as artistic director of The Boston Players, a chamber music ensemble that performed from 1992 to 1997. He has recorded with the Moscow Chamber Orchestra and Cologne Radio Symphony, toured with the Novosibirsk (Russia) Philharmonic and the Radio and Television Orchestra of Belgrade, and appeared as soloist with the Seoul (S. Korea) Sinfonietta, Tomsk (Russia) Symphony, and in the U.S., the Boston Pops, the Reno Chamber Orchestra, and the symphonies of Seattle, Tacoma, Milwaukee, Indianapolis, Chattanooga and Springfield (MA). Shames' performance of Daniel Asia's Scherzo-Sonata, a work written for him, appears on Summit Records.
Shames studied piano performance at the University of Michigan with Theodore Lettvin and Leon Fleisher. He was a conducting fellow of the Tanglewood Institute in 1994 and has worked with Seiji Ozawa, Bernard Haitink, Gustav Meier, Gerard Schwarz and Samuel Jones. He has taught at Cornell University, SUNY-Binghamton, Rutgers University, the Chautauqua Institute, Oberlin Conservatory and Interlochen.
Office: Catlett Music Center 116F
Email: es@ou.edu
A native of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Dr. Eric Shannon serves as Assistant Professor and Assistant Director of Athletic Bands. In this role, he assists with the direction of and designs drill for the renowned “Pride of Oklahoma” Marching Band, oversees the “Sound of the Sooners” basketball bands, conducts a University Campus Band, and teaches the marching band methods course.
Before returning to OU, Dr. Shannon served as Director of Athletic Bands and Associate Professor at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas. During his 11-year tenure at Lamar, he oversaw all aspects of the “Showcase of Southeast Texas” marching band, conducted the Symphonic Concert Band, directed the jazz band-style Basketball Pep Band, taught conducting and marching methods courses in the music education track, and coordinated music department auditions and admissions. He was also deeply involved in university service, chairing multiple hiring committees, leading department fundraisers, serving on the University Athletic Council, and representing faculty as a University Faculty Senator (2020–2022).
Under his leadership, the Lamar University marching band performed at high-profile events, including Houston Texans and Texas A&M halftimes, UIL State Marching Championships, a Bands of America San Antonio Super Regional, and several Mardi Gras parades in New Orleans. Additionally, he fostered student engagement beyond performances by spearheading initiatives like partnerships with the National Marrow Donor Program and performing for community outreach events such as the Adaptive Sports for Kids opening day and the National Heart Association’s Heart Health Walks.
Prior to his appointment at Lamar, Dr. Shannon served as a Doctoral Conducting Associate at the University of Oklahoma, where he earned his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in 2015. He also holds a Master of Music degree in instrumental conducting from the University of Houston (2012) and a Bachelor of Music Education degree from the University of Oklahoma (2007). In 2006, he was the 56th drum major for the Pride of Oklahoma Marching Band.
In addition to his university band experience, Dr. Shannon marched with The Cavaliers Drum & Bugle Corps during the 2003, 2004, and 2006 seasons, earning DCI World Championships in 2004 and 2006 and a silver medal in 2003. He was also part of the 2006 I&E first-place brass ensemble and later returned to The Cavaliers as a visual staff member for the 2007, 2008, and 2010 seasons.
Before beginning his graduate studies in Houston, Dr. Shannon taught public school in Tulsa, Oklahoma, from 2007 to 2010, serving as Instrumental Music Director at Memorial High School. There he oversaw all aspects of the band, orchestra, and jazz programs, leading ensembles to consistent superior and excellent ratings as well as Best in Class honors at festivals in Chicago and San Diego.
