Our Director, Donald Neuen

Donald Neuen has defined the artistic vision and performance standards of UCLA Choral Music since 1993. UCLA is proud to have the leadership and dedication to excellence of this internationally-acclaimed director, who has been referred to as “the great choral conductor of his generation,” by musicologist Julius Herford. As Director of UCLA Choral Activities, Professor Neuen leads one of the most respected graduate choral conducting programs in the United States. Prior to UCLA, he served for twelve years in the same position at the Eastman School of Music.

Hailed by Don Hinshaw as “the driving force of choral music education in America,” Neuen also conducts the Crystal Cathedral Choir at the landmark Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, CA. He appears weekly on their internationally-televised "Hour of Power" broadcast, viewed every Sunday by over 31 million people worldwide. Maestro Neuen also serves as the conductor and artistic director of the Angeles Chorale, a position he has held since 1995.

A student and protégé of Robert Shaw, Neuen went to Atlanta in 1970 at Shaw’s request to create the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus, and to serve as Assistant Conductor and Director of Choral Activities for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Professor Neuen has made it his personal mission to build on the standards of excellence set by Shaw.

Neuen has served on the faculties of the universities of Wisconsin, Tennessee, Ball State, and Georgia State. He has conducted orchestras from around the world, and has led conducting clinics in Europe, Asia, Mexico, Canada, and nearly every state in the United States.