Dr. Julie Ford
Conductor and Vocalist, Classical and Jazz
Dr. Julie Ford is Director of Music and Worship at Lafayette-Orinda Presbyterian Church, a 2200-member congregation in the San Francisco Bay Area, CA, USA.
A Passion for Integrating Classical and Jazz
She designs liturgy for worship services, directs three choirs (Chamber Singers, Chancel Choir, and Festival Choir), conducts choral-orchestral works, and collaborates for special worship events with the Company C Contemporary Ballet, Jubilate Baroque Orchestra, and Temple Isaiah of Lafayette, CA. Her Chamber Singers recently performed at the American Choral Directors Association national convention. Check out Dr. Ford's choral blog for articles about choral events and links to recordings of these choirs.
She sings in and directs Without Measure (early music vocal quintet) and sings with the groups Moodswing (vocal jazz quartet, 2005 Champions of the San Francisco Bay Area Harmony Sweepstakes) and Everyday Wisdom (a contemporary sacred jazz/gospel/pop/light classical ensemble). All of these ensembles inform and facilitate her passion for integrating classical and jazz idioms in worship and in concert.
Dr. Ford is the Chair of the Repertoire and Standards Committee for Music and Worship for the California American Choral Directors Association. For over a decade, she has assisted churches with the creative integration of contemporary and traditional music ("blended worship") through the cross-pollination of jazz and early music development. One of her most successful strategies has been collaborating with a jazz arranger/composer on staff to elevate contemporary forms to a level of complexity and artistry that draws in musical enthusiasts and wins over most traditionalists.
Background
- Doctorate of Music Arts, University of Oklahoma, Choral Conducting (dissertation explored the mutually informative performance practices of late Rennaissance Italian madrigals and twentieth-century jazz ballads)
- Master of Music, Eastman School of Music, Conducting
- Bachelor of Arts, San Jose State University, Vocal Performance
- Principle teachers: Dr. Dennis Schrock, Donald Neuen, Dr. Charlene Archibeque, Perla Warren, Roger Letson
- Served on the faculties of San Jose State University and DeAnza College, and led the Vocal Jazz program for the Pacific Music Camp at the University of the Pacific Conservatory
- Active as a vocal soloist, worship consultant, guest conductor, and as an adjudicator/clinician for the International Association of Jazz Educators, Music Educators National Conference, and for the American Choral Directors Association