Department of Music Faculty and Staff

Dr. Brian St. John is an Associate Professor of Music, serving as the Baker Professor of Music and Director of Orchestras at Western Kentucky University. Prior to his appointment at WKU, Dr. St. John was an Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Orchestras at the University of Evansville. At UE St. John directed the University Symphony Orchestra and String Ensemble and taught conducting and composition courses. During his years in Evansville, Dr. St. John was also Assistant Conductor for the Evansville Philharmonic Orchestra and Music Director for the Evansville Philharmonic Youth Orchestra. Earlier in his career Dr. St. John spent 13 years in Boulder County, Colorado, where he was Resident Conductor for the Longmont Symphony Orchestra, Music Director of the Longmont Youth Symphony and Music Director for the Niwot Timberline Symphony (now the Boulder Symphony Orchestra).  In addition to his conducting activities, Dr. St. John wrote and premiered seven original ballets, a piano concerto, a concertino for string bass and orchestra and a double concerto for mandolin, mandola and strings. Additionally, he co-founded two arts organizations which are still in operation in Boulder County and even taught public school strings for four years! Brian began his professional career as the Assistant Conductor for the State Ballet of Missouri (now the Kansas City Ballet) and Assistant Conductor for the Philharmonia of Kansas City. He has worked as a professional conductor for 30 years.

In addition to his position at Western Kentucky University, Dr. St. John is Music Director for the Bowling Green Youth Orchestra. BGYO is a full orchestra comprised of 60 young musicians drawn from six counties in southern Kentucky.

Dr. St. John holds a bachelor’s degree in viola performance and a master’s degree in orchestral conducting from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Orchestral Conducting from Arizona State University.  At ASU Brian was an assistant conductor for the Symphony Orchestra and the Chamber Orchestra as well as a conductor for the ASU Sinfonietta. While in Arizona, St. John also served as Music Director for the North Valley Chamber Orchestra and was adjunct faculty at Paradise Valley Community College; both in Scottsdale, Arizona.

At WKU Dr. St. John has conducted numerous concerts featuring standard repertoire, world premieres, and collaborations with the Department of Theatre and Dance for opera and ballet. St. John has written and premiered three works at WKU: ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas for Narrator, Dancers, and Orchestra, Divertimento for dancers and electronic music, and Double Concerto No. 2 for Mandolin, Mandola, and Strings. His 2001 ballet, Hansel and Gretel will be performed in February 2023 at Utah Valley University featuring newly composed music recorded by the WKU Symphony.

Dr. St. John is an active clinician, having led orchestra clinics in Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and has guest-conducted a run of Nutcracker Ballet performances with the Phoenix Symphony and Ballet Arizona.

He is married to Christa St. John, Assistant Professor of Ballet at Utah Valley University, in Orem, Utah.