Gary Packwood

Gary Packwood is the recipient of the 2007-2008 Distinguished Teacher Award for the College of Fine Arts at the University of Montevallo. In his 6th year at Montevallo, he is currently the Associate Director of Choral Activities, where he conducts both the Chamber Singers and the University Chorus, and leads the undergraduate music education program. Ensembles under his direction have appeared at state and national conventions of MENC, and toured throughout the United States and Europe. An active guest conductor, adjudicator, and lecturer, Dr. Packwood currently holds Artist-in-Residence positions with the Department of Music at the University of West Florida (since 2005), the Las Vegas Academy of International Studies, Performing and Visual Arts (since 2005), and Timber Creek High School Music Department. In 2006 he served as guest conductor and lecturer, for the Festival Internacional de Musica da UFPI in Brazil; the first American choral conductor to be invited, and in 2007 he returned to Brazil as Artist-in-Residence with the Conservatory of Music at the University of Uberlandia. He has conducted honors choirs in 17 states and will lead the Louisiana All-State Choir in November 2008. Dr. Packwood has studied conducting with Kenneth Fulton, Sara Lynn Baird, Patricia Fletias and Timothy Mount. He has served in numerous leadership roles with the American Choral Directors Association including membership on four consecutive divisional convention-planning committees (2004, 2006, 2008, 2010) and is currently the R&S Chair for Ethnic & Multicultural Perspectives for the Southern Division. Dr. Packwood is the Founding Artistic Director for the Montevallo Chorale, a small community based choir, and is the Music Director for the Unitarian Universalist Church of Birmingham. He is a member of Golden Key International Honour Society, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia and Pi Kappa Lambda.