Prairie View A&M Director of Choral Activities Emerita
A. Jan Taylor is an accomplished educator, pianist, singer, and choral conductor from Houston, Texas. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in conducting from the University of Houston, as well as a Master of Arts degree from Prairie View A&M University. Dr. Taylor served as Associate Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities at Prairie View A&M University from 1996 until her retirement in 2022.
Throughout her career, Dr. Taylor has taught general music, piano, and directed choirs at the elementary, middle, and high school levels in the Houston Independent School District. A highly sought-after adjudicator and choral clinician, she has worked with numerous competitions, festivals, and regional choirs across the country. She is also a noted lecturer on the performance practices and preservation of the Negro Spiritual.
Dr. Taylor's work as a performer and conductor has taken her across the United States, Europe, and Asia. As a former Assistant Conductor of the Houston Symphony Chorus under Charles Hausmann, she prepared choirs and collaborated with esteemed conductors and composers. With the Houston Ebony Opera Guild, she has coached vocalists and conducted the Guild's chorus in performances of spirituals, African American choral art music, and operatic works.
She has also conducted the “105 Voices of History” HBCU National Choir at prestigious venues, including the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium, the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and the nationally televised MLK50 Commemoration at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis. Under her direction, the Prairie View A&M University Concert Chorale and Chamber Singers performed widely throughout the United States and internationally, collaborating with the Houston Symphony Orchestra and appearing at music festivals in Poland, Germany, and South America.
Other work by Dr. Taylor includes serving as a lecturer, guest panelist, and presenting choral conducting masterclasses with organizations such as The Voices of Houston, Bent But Not Broken, the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), Texas Choral Directors Association (TCDA), Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA), and numerous regional conferences throughout the United States. In recognition of her contributions to choral music, Dr. Taylor was honored with the Texas Choral Directors Association Choirmaster Award in 2023. She is an active member of the Texas Music Educators Association, American Choral Directors Association, Texas Choral Directors Association, and Sigma Alpha Iota Music Fraternity for Women.
Paul D. Head D.M.A
University of Delaware Professor of Choral Studies
This year marks Dr. Paul D. Head’s 28th year as the distinguished professor of choral studies at the University of Delaware. Choirs under his leadership have been recognized throughout the United States and Europe, appearing six times on national and regional conferences of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) while winning awards at international competitions in Spain, Hungary, Germany, the UK, New Zealand and the prestigious Grand Prix Award in the Estonian Choral Competition. Under his direction, the Delaware Choral Scholars have been celebrated as divisional first-place winners at the Llangollen Eisteddfod Competition in Wales, before garnering four gold medals at the World Choir Games in Auckland, New Zealand, where the choir was deemed by the Interkultur Choral Council as the #1 choir in the world. Most recently, the Delaware Choral Scholars were awarded two top prizes in Marktoberdorf, Germany, followed by a sweeping win at the Tolosa (Spain) Choral Competition, resulting in an appearance at the European Grand Prix in Maribor, Slovenia last spring.
He has conducted honor choirs in 27 of the United States as well as several choirs in Great Britain and Europe. Having served as President of ACDA-Eastern Division, he frequently appears as an adjudicator, conductor, and clinician, with most recent engagements throughout Europe, in addition to Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and South Africa.
Also highly regarded as a pedagogue and author of several books, Dr. Head’s most notable contribution is his role as co-author and co-editor of the Oxford Handbook of Choral Pedagogy, in addition to contributions to numerous GIA publications on music education and rehearsal technique.
Under Dr. Head’s leadership, the Delaware Choral Scholars have enjoyed residencies with several organizations, including the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, the Delaware Symphony Orchestra, and Manhattan Productions in New York City. For six years, they served as the core ensemble for the Delaware Choral Conducting Symposium in France – an intensive program for aspiring choral directors from all over the United States.
Prior to coming to Delaware, Dr. Head taught in the California public schools, where his choirs received numerous awards, culminating in being named state champions in the Golden State Choral Competition – a prestigious festival for the finest school choirs in the state.
He is the proud father of three grown children, two grandchildren, and resides in rural Pennsylvania with his wife and lovable dog named Charley.
Eduardo Garcia-Novelli D.M.A
University of Kansas Director of Choral Studies
Eduardo García-Novelli serves as Director of Choral Studies at the University of Kansas, where he oversees the graduate program in choral conducting and leads the university’s choral program. Prior to joining Kansas, he served as Director of Choral Activities and Chair of the Music Department at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin, following six years as Director of Choral Activities at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas. Throughout his career, Dr. García-Novelli has built a reputation for artistic excellence and international collaboration. At Carthage College, he led the Carthage Choir in performances at five state music conferences, three national tours, five European tours, a debut performance at Carnegie Hall, and multiple appearances at Chicago Orchestra Hall. Under his direction, the choir earned international acclaim by winning both competition categories at the prestigious Spittal International Choir Competition in Austria. At Lamar University, he received the Faculty Merit Award while leading the university’s choir to landmark performances at the Texas Music Educators Association Convention, the National Collegiate Choral Organization Conference, and the International Choral Festival in Panama.
An internationally respected conductor, Dr. García-Novelli has appeared throughout North and South America, Europe, and Asia as a clinician, adjudicator, and guest conductor. His conducting credits include performances at Carnegie Hall, the Peterskirche in Vienna, and the CCK Concert Hall in Buenos Aires. He has also served as Assistant Director of the Houston Symphony Chorus, Assistant Conductor of Argentina’s National Young People’s Choir, Artistic Director of the Master Singers of Milwaukee, and currently serves as Choirmaster at Grace Episcopal Cathedral in Topeka, Kansas. Under Dr. García-Novelli’s leadership, the University of Kansas Chamber Choir has earned significant international recognition. In 2023, the ensemble won first prizes in two categories at the Preveza International Choir Competition in Greece, along with awards for Best Program and Best Conductor. The choir was selected to present the President’s Concert at the 2024 Kansas Music Educators Association Conference and, in 2025, captured the Grand Prix at the Cracovia Cantans International Choir Competition in Poland after winning both the Sacred Music and Mixed Choir categories, qualifying the ensemble for the 2026 World Choir Championship. A native of Argentina, Dr. García-Novelli holds undergraduate degrees in Choral Conducting and Music Education, a Master of Music degree with distinction from Westminster Choir College, and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Houston. He and his wife, María Fernanda Fiocchi, are the proud parents of two grown children.
