Areas of Expertise
- Conducting
- Choral Music
- Opera
- Oratorical works of Michael Tippett
- Renaissance French Chanson
Professional Background
Jean-Sébastien Vallée is an active conductor, clinician, and adjudicator. Prior to his arrival at the University of Redlands, Jean-Sébastien conducted more than fifteen ensembles in Canada and the United States including the Canada National Youth Choir and the Vancouver Chamber Choir. At the University of Redlands, Dr. Vallée teaches conducting at both the undergraduate and graduate levels and conducts the University Choir and the Chapel Singers. Under his direction, the Chapel Singers were recently invited to perform for the California Music Educators Association state conference in March 2010, and in June 2011, the ensemble will be one of the eight choral groups competing at the San Luis Obispo International Choral Festival.
Vallée has studied under such renowned conductors as Chester Alwes, Eduardo Diazmunoz, Iwan Edwards, Agnes Grossman, Chantal Masson-Bourque, Nicole Paiement, Raphaele Ponti, Miroslav Papsavov, Donald Schleicher, and Jon Washburn. Dr. Vallée holds degrees from the Université Laval, the Université de Sherbrooke, the University of California, Santa Cruz, and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
In addition to his interest in choral, operatic, and orchestra music, Vallée is an advocate of contemporary music, making one of his priorities to premiere and commission works by young composers and program rarely performed repertoire.
As a scholar, Dr. Vallée has presented his work on Renaissance French music at the national convention of the American Choral Directors Association in Oklahoma City, and at Festival 500 in Newfoundland, Canada. Vallée has also been invited to present his research on Michael Tippett's oratorical works at the 2011 National ACDA convention in Chicago.
Dr. Vallée is also Founder and Musical Director of the Redlands Choral Artists, a 16-voice professional choir, as well as Director of Music at Redlands First Presbyterian Church and at Glendale City Church.
Courses Offered at Redlands
Courses Offered at Redlands
- Chapel Singers
- University Choir
- Introduction to Conducting
- Choral Methods
- Graduate Seminar: Authenticity and Music
- Ear Training
Presentations
Tippett and the Spiritual: A Study of the Genesis of Michael Tippett’s A Child of Our Time (2011 ACDA National Conference, Chicago)
Performing the French Chanson: A Hypothetical Reconstruction of Songs by French Provincial Composers of the 16th Century (2009 ACDA National Conference, Oklahoma City, and Festival 500, St. John’s, Canada)
Professional Affiliations
- Association of Canadian Choral Communities (ACCC)
- American Choral Directors Association (ACDA)
- National Collegiate Choral Organization (NCCO)
- Association des Chorales du Québec (ACQ)
- The College Music Society (CMS)
- The California Association for Music Education (CMEA)
- The National Association for Music Education (MENC)