Ronnie Oliver, Jr. is a conductor and educator whose commitment to the advancement of choral art through performance, mentoring, and teaching has spanned over 30 years.
Dr. Oliver is currently the Associate Director of Choral Activities at the Manhattan School of Music. He is also the Artistic Director and Conductor of EnsembleNYC, an emerging choral ensemble whose vision is to be a catalyst for hope in New York City. He has served as choral director and teacher of conducting at Westminster Choir College (Princeton, NJ), Western Michigan University, Western Kentucky University, Greensboro College (NC), and Texas Tech University. Dr. Oliver has also served on the faculty of the Juilliard Evening Division and the Music Education Workshops of the Carnegie Hall Weill Music Institute.
Dr. Oliver has served as the Executive Director of Manhattan Concert Productions, where he was responsible for the overall administration and management of festival concerts at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, The Kennedy Center, Orchestra Hall in Chicago, and The Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. His duties included collaboration with nationally known guest conductors, working directly with the production teams at the various venues, fiscal management, and escorting performing ensembles on tours of Europe and Great Britain. Dr. Oliver served as the Managing Director of Musica Sacra, a professional choral ensemble in New York City, for the 2009-2010 season. He was also selected as a Conducting Fellow for the 2012 Chorus America Master Class in Choral-Orchestral Conducting.
Dr. Oliver received his Bachelor of Music Education degree from Murray State University in Murray, KY, and his Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting and Ph.D. in Fine Arts from Texas Tech University
He has studied conducting with Robert Baar, Gerald Welker, and Kenneth Davis. In addition, Dr. Oliver has participated in masterclasses and clinics with Paul Salamunovich, Robert Page, Dennis Keene, and Robert Shaw. He has participated in the Oregon Bach Festival’s Conducting Master Class with Helmuth Rilling. Dr. Oliver has appeared at Carnegie Hall, most recently conducting Fauré’s Requiem with the Masterworks Festival Chorus and New York City Chamber Orchestra.
He is a member of the American Choral Directors Association, National Association for Music Education, The National Collegiate Choral Organization, New York Choral Consortium (Board Member), The College Music Society, Pi Kappa Lambda, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia.
