Leon Burke III is an American musician,

singer Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...

, and conductor from

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

. He began his musical studies at age 12 and by age 16 was conducting orchestras.

Personal life

Leon Burke III is a native St. Louisan, where he attended Mc Bride High School and

John Burroughs School John Burroughs School (JBS) is a private, non-sectarian college-preparatory school with 631 students in grades 7– 12. Its 49-acre () campus is located in Ladue, Missouri (US), a suburb of St. Louis. Founded in 1923, it is named for U.S. natu ...

. He holds music degrees from the

Oberlin Conservatory The Oberlin Conservatory of Music is a private music conservatory in Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio. It was founded in 1865 and is the second oldest conservatory and oldest continually operating conservatory in the United States. It is one of ...

and the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. T ...

. Burke studied as a

Fulbright Fellow The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

in Paraguay. Burke writes: "I was born in St. Louis into a family of teachers. My aunt was the first black woman to earn a doctorate from St. Louis University. She was a major influence in my life and introduced me to

Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...

when I was young. I began to dedicate my life to music when I began my music studies at age 12. My instruments were piano and organ but I also sang.""Leon Burke"
, Guests, Eliot Chapel

Professional life

Burke is the Music Director and Conductor of the

University City Symphony Orchestra The University City Symphony Orchestra (UCSO) is a non-profit community orchestra, established in 1960, giving amateur musicians in the St. Louis, Missouri area the opportunity to play orchestral literature. Though drawing on musicians from thro ...

and Assistant Conductor of the Saint Louis Symphony Chorus. He conducts the Cadenza Orchestra of the Saint Charles County Youth Orchestra Program and is the Music Director of the Belleville Philharmonic Youth Orchestra. He is also the Choir Director at Eliot Unitarian Chapel in Kirkwood. Outside of the St. Louis area, he is the Conductor for the Metropolitan Ballet of Topeka, where he conducts ''

The Nutcracker ''The Nutcracker'' ( rus, Щелкунчик, Shchelkunchik, links=no ) is an 1892 two-act ballet (""; russian: балет-феерия, link=no, ), originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchai ...

'' every December. Burke also conducted '' Amahl and the Night Visitors'' in Jefferson City, Missouri, during the 2008 holiday season. He teaches voice at

East Central College East Central College (ECC) is a public community college with its main campus in Union, Missouri. It also offers classes in Rolla and Washington. Approximately 2,100 students are enrolled in classes each semester. ECC is accredited by the High ...

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

and St. Louis University. He conducts concerts most summers with the Asuncion Symphony (National Orchestra of Paraguay) where he is the Principal Guest Conductor. While in

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

, he also works with the National Youth Orchestra. In Summer 2009, he performed concerts in Tucuman, Argentina. Burke has served as Conductor/Music Director of the Lawrence Chamber Players, the Hutchinson Symphony, the Alton Symphony Orchestra, and the McPherson Symphony. He has been on the faculties of

Baker University Baker University is a private university in Baldwin City, Kansas. Founded in 1858, it was the first four-year university in Kansas and is affiliated with the United Methodist Church. Baker University is made up of four schools. The College of Ar ...

, Sterling College,

Hutchinson Community College Hutchinson Community College (HutchCC or HCC) is a public community college in Hutchinson, Kansas, United States. It serves nearly 5,000 credit students every semester. History The college was established in the spring of 1928 as Hutchinson Ju ...

, and

Webster University Webster University is a private university with its main campus in Webster Groves, Missouri. It has multiple branch locations across the United States and countries across Europe, Asia, and Africa. It offers undergraduate and graduate program ...

. Burke is an active member of

Unitarian Universalists Unitarian Universalism (UU) is a liberal religion characterized by a "free and responsible search for truth and meaning". Unitarian Universalists assert no creed, but instead are unified by their shared search for spiritual growth, guided by ...

Musicians Network (UUMN). He served as a member of the UUA New Hymn Resource Task Force, which was appointed in the Fall of 2003 to create a new congregational hymn resource. ''Singing the Journey'' debuted at the 2005 UUA General Assembly to enthusiastic reviews. Burke has won the Arts for Life Award for Best Achievement in Musical Direction for his work with Spotlight Theater's production of ''Titanic'' in 2003. Other productions with the Spotlight Theater (''Chicago, Jekyll and Hyde, West Side Story'') were honored with nominations for Best Musical Production, and two more nominations for Burke for Best Musical Director. All the nominated productions were performed at Marquette High School during the summers. Leon Burke III is on the roster of cover conductors for the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra. He made his SLSO concert conducting debut on February 21, 2009, leading the orchestra, the symphony's IN UNISON Chorus, and the University of Missouri-St. Louis Community Chorus as part of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra's annual ''Lift Every Voice: Black History Month Celebration'' concert. The second half of the concert featured ''A Tribute to Mae Wheeler''.

Education

* B.M., Composition,

* MM,

* DMA, Conducting, University of Kansas *

, Paraguay Leon Burke has also studied with

Sir Georg Solti Sir Georg Solti ( , ; born György Stern; 21 October 1912 – 5 September 1997) was a Hungarian-British orchestral and operatic conductor, known for his appearances with opera companies in Munich, Frankfurt and London, and as a long-servin ...

Leonard Slatkin Leonard Edward Slatkin (born September 1, 1944) is an American conductor, author and composer. Early life and education Slatkin was born in Los Angeles to a Jewish musical family that came from areas of the Russian Empire now in Ukraine. His fat ...

Edo de Waart Edo de Waart (born 1 June 1941, Amsterdam) is a Dutch conductor. He is Music Director Laureate of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. De Waart is the former chief conductor of the Royal Flemish Philharmonic (2011-2016), Artistic Partner with the ...

, and

Jorge Mester Jorge Mester (born April 10, 1935, Mexico City) is a Mexican conductor of Hungarian ancestry. He has served as the artistic director for the Orquesta Filarmónica de Boca del Río, Veracruz, since it was founded in 2014. Biography He studied cond ...

Current positions

* Music Director and Conductor –

* Assistant Conductor – St. Louis Symphony Chorus * Conductor – Cadenza Orchestra, St. Charles County Youth Orchestra ( St. Charles, Missouri) * Conductor – Metropolitan Ballet of Topeka * Conductor – Belleville Philharmonic Youth Orchestra ( Belleville, Illinois) * Choir Director – Eliot Unitarian Chapel (

Kirkwood, Missouri Kirkwood is an inner-ring western suburb of St. Louis located in St. Louis County, Missouri. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 27,540. Founded in 1853, the city is named after James P. Kirkwood, builder of the Pacific Railroad ...

) * Faculty (voice) – St. Louis University * Adjunct Faculty (voice) –

(

Union, Missouri Union is a city in and the county seat of Franklin County, Missouri, United States. It is located on the Bourbeuse River, southwest of St. Louis. The population was 10,204 at the 2010 census, with the city showing the highest growth rate (32% ...

) * Principal Guest Conductor – Asuncion Symphony (

) * Cover Conductor – St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (

)

References

External links

St. Charles County Youth Orchestra
Retrieved February 14, 2009
''Singing the Journey''
Unitarian Universalist Association. Retrieved February 14, 2009 {{DEFAULTSORT:Burke, Leon, Iii American male conductors (music) American male singers Oberlin College alumni Musicians from St. Louis Year of birth missing (living people) Living people University of Kansas alumni Singers from Missouri Classical musicians from Missouri 21st-century American conductors (music) 21st-century American male musicians John Burroughs School alumni