Biography
Dr. Brent Wells, Associate Professor of Choral Conducting and Ensembles, is the director of the Brigham Young University Men’s Chorus and Concert Choir. Prior to his appointment at BYU, he served as Director of Choral Activities at the College of Idaho and has also led choral programs at the secondary level.
Dr. Wells received his DMA in choral conducting at Michigan State University, where he studied with David Rayl, Sandra Snow, and Jonathan Reed. He earned his BM in music education and MM in choral conducting at Brigham Young University under the tutelage of Ronald Staheli, Mack Wilberg, and Rosalind Hall.
Wells’ scholarship and creative activity focus primarily on hymnody and the folksong. He has published a series of articles in the Choral Journal discussing the folk-based compositions and collecting methodology of Percy Grainger and is also active as a composer and arranger. His works include original compositions as well as arrangements from the sacred harp repertory, the treasury of the African-American spiritual, and the folk traditions of Appalachia, England, Germany, Poland, Vietnam, China, Armenia, and the country of Georgia.
As a bass vocalist, Dr. Wells has performed as a featured soloist and enjoyed membership in many acclaimed choral ensembles. He has sung professionally with the Santa Fe Desert Chorale, Tennessee Chamber Chorus, Boise Baroque Orchestra, and Redlands Choral Artists. He also performed the Berlioz Grande Messe des morts, Op. 5 with the Carnegie Hall Festival Chorus under the direction of Robert Spano.