bio

Dominick DiOrio is a highly regarded conductor, composer, and academic leader who has earned widespread recognition for his substantive contributions to American choral music. A dual recipient of The American Prizes in Choral Composition and Choral Performance, he brings a sophisticated, energetic perspective to all his creative endeavors.

DiOrio serves as professor of music and chair of the choral conducting department at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, a position he has held since 2012. In this capacity, he directs NOTUS, Indiana University’s celebrated contemporary vocal ensemble.

Under DiOrio’s artistic direction, NOTUS has established a global footprint. The ensemble has received invitations to perform at prominent industry events including the International Federation for Choral Music's World Symposium (Auckland, New Zealand) and multiple regional and national gatherings of the American Choral Directors Association and National Collegiate Choral Organization. NOTUS has also expanded its commercial presence, releasing three critically acclaimed albums: Of Radiance and Refraction, What Is Ours: Music for an America in Progress, and Weaving Eternity: Music of Wild Imagination. Recently, the ensemble has diversified into high-profile commercial media projects, providing choral tracks for Disney Plus (Maul: Shadow Lord) and collaborating with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra to present Distant Worlds | Final Fantasy with conductor Arnie Roth.

Simultaneously, DiOrio serves as the fourteenth artistic director and conductor of Mendelssohn Chorus of Philadelphia, one of the most historic choral institutions in the United States. Through this appointment, he regularly prepares the chorus for symphonic collaborations with The Philadelphia Orchestra, earning critical praise from publications such as The Philadelphia Inquirer for performances under distinguished guest conductors. His artistic vision for the chorus has garnered consistent philanthropic validation, securing funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Presser Foundation, and the William Penn Foundation.

As a composer, DiOrio is recognized for an evocative, highly intelligent style described by Gramophone as a “tour de force of inventive thinking.” His catalog contains more than seventy published works that have been programmed at major international venues, including Carnegie Hall, Washington National Cathedral, and the Sydney Opera House. He maintains a robust commissioning schedule, completing dozens of new works over the past decade for diverse clients. These include institutional commissions from universities like Princeton, Michigan, and Oberlin, as well as professional ensembles such as the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus, the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra, and the United States Marine Band.

DiOrio’s unique standing as a composer-conductor facilitates cross-disciplinary artistic collaborations with influential contemporary figures, ranging from Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Richard Powers to historic public icons including Bishop Gene Robinson and actor William Shatner. His guest conducting appearances frequently showcase his own literature alongside an expansive repertoire of twentieth- and twenty-first-century masterpieces. He has conducted seminal modern works by composers such as Steve Reich, Sarah Kirkland Snider, and Krzysztof Penderecki, alongside traditional choral-orchestral literature by Bach, Mozart, Haydn, and Bernstein.

Beyond his creative and academic achievements, DiOrio is deeply committed to institutional service and advocacy within the musical community. He completed four elected terms as president and treasurer of the National Collegiate Choral Organization, where his leadership during the pandemic earned him the organization's inaugural Distinguished Service Award. He has also contributed his administrative expertise as a board member for Chorus America and as chair of the Composition Initiatives Standing Committee for the American Choral Directors Association. Early in his career, he developed his professional foundation as an assistant conductor and tenor with the Grammy Award-winning Houston Chamber Choir.

DiOrio earned his Doctor of Musical Arts in Choral Conducting, Master of Musical Arts, and Master of Music from the Yale School of Music. He completed his undergraduate studies at Ithaca College, graduating summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Music in Composition. He attributes much of his professional philosophy and leadership methodology to his mentors: Janet Galván, Simon Carrington, and Marguerite Brooks.

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