Dr. James Wilson is an associate professor and chair of the music department at Viterbo University where he directs the Concert Choir, 9th Street Singers, and Viterbo Choral Arts. Wilson also teaches conducting, song literature, opera literature, diction, and serves as the artistic director for the annual A Viterbo Christmas performances. 

Prior to his coming to Viterbo, Wilson served as professor of music and director of choirs at Wesley College, a private liberal arts college located in Dover, Delaware. For 10 years he served as artistic director of the Delaware Choral Society, an organization of 100 singers with whom he performed works such as Handel’s Messiah, Orff’s Carmina Burana, and Haydn’s The Creation. In 2014, Wilson founded and directed the music nonprofit organization The Kent Chamber Choir, Delaware’s premier all-auditioned community choral ensemble. From 2014 to 2020, he served in the roles of President Elect, President, and Past President of Delaware ACDA.

As a church musician, Wilson has served numerous congregations throughout the country including St. Joseph’s Cathedral in Hartford, Connecticut; Boston University’s Marsh Chapel; St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Greensboro, North Carolina; Trinity United Methodist Church in Lincoln, Nebraska; and Wesley United Methodist Church in Dover, Delaware. He is a highly sought clinician and adjudicator throughout the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic.

Wilson’s education includes a BM in vocal performance from The Hartt School, an MM in choral conducting from Boston University, and a DMA in choral conducting from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His teachers and mentors include Ann Howard Jones, Therees Hibbard, and Peter Eklund.