Nathan Leaf

Bio

Dr. Nathan Leaf is the Director of Choral Activities at North Carolina State University, where he leads four ensembles and heads the choral program. He is the Artistic Director of the Concert Singers of Cary and founded the NC State Choral Artists and the chamber consort Voices of a New Renaissance. A versatile musician, he has garnered critical praise for his work as a conductor, teacher, composer, and recording producer, and has collaborated with many of North Carolina’s leading musical organizations, including the North Carolina Symphony, the North Carolina Master Chorale and Chamber Choir, the Chamber Orchestra of the Triangle, Mallarmé Music, the North Carolina Baroque Orchestra, Raleigh Camerata, and the NC HIP Music Festival. During his tenure at NC State, the choral and vocal areas have experienced significant growth. His work with young singers emphasizes thoughtful musicality and healthy vocal production. He frequently works with local high school choirs, has served as a guest conductor and clinician throughout the country, and choirs under his direction have toured in the U.S. and abroad, including performances in England, Ireland, France, Italy, Austria and the Czech Republic. From 2008-2012, Dr. Leaf was the Chorus Master for North Carolina Opera.

Leaf sang for eight seasons as a member of the Oregon Bach Festival Chorus in Eugene, Oregon, and has performed with several other professional choirs, including the GRAMMY-winning Conspirare-Company of Voices in Texas, True Concord in Arizona, and the Carnegie Hall Festival Chorus in New York City. As part of his doctoral research, he toured Central Europe as member of the Swedish male choir Orphei Drängar. His choral compositions have been performed by choirs in the Southeastern and Midwestern United States, and his stage credits as a conductor, singer, and orchestra member include productions of La Cenerentola, Rigoletto, Tosca, Faust, Carmen, Il Trovatore, Gianni Schicchi, Suor Angelica, Le Nozze di Figaro, A Little Night Music, and A Chorus Line, among others.

Dr. Leaf earned a Bachelor of Music Education degree from Valparaiso University and a Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degree in choral conducting from the Butler School of Music at The University of Texas at Austin. A recipient of UT’s Bruton Graduate Fellowship, he has presented his research on Swedish choral music at multiple conferences and in several publications, including in a feature article in Choral Journal, the primary publication of the American Choral Directors Association.