Robert Istad Choral Series

Robert Istad, a Grammy Award winning conductor who fashions fluent and sumptuous readings (Voice of OC) with his “phenomenal” artistry (Los Angeles Times), was appointed Pacific Chorale Artistic Director in 2017. His artistic impact can be heard on two recent recordings featuring Pacific Chorale, including the 2022 Grammy Award winning “Mahler’s Eighth Symphony” with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Gustavo Dudamel on Deutsche Grammophon (2021), for which he prepared the chorus. Additionally, Istad conducted the Pacific Chorale recording “All Things Common: The Music of Tarik O Regan” released on Yarlung Records (2020).

An esteemed educator, Istad is Professor of Music and Director of Choral Studies at California State University (CSUF), Fullerton, where he was recognized as CSUF’s 2016 Outstanding Professor of the Year. He conducts the University Singers and manages a large graduate conducting program, in addition to teaching courses on conducting and choral literature. Istad, who is on the Executive Board of Directors of Chorus America and serves as Dean of Chorus America’s Conducting Academy, is in demand as guest conductor, lecturer, and clinician.