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NorCal Wind Conducting Symposium
Next Symposium: June 16-21, 2026
The NorCal Wind Conducting Symposium, founded by Dr. Robert Halseth at Sacramento State in June 1994, is back for its 29th year in 2026! Open to adult conductors, the six-day Symposium will provide a safe, nurturing environment of professional development in which to improve conducting skills, rehearsal techniques, and wind literature awareness.
Work one on one with our Guest Artist Clinician, Dr. John Lynch, and our current Sacramento State Director of Bands, Dr. Matthew Morse.
The Symposium provides a unique opportunity for up to 20 Participant/Conductors to receive podium time and instruction in front of a 45-piece wind ensemble. Additionally, an unlimited number of Auditor/Observers will also be accepted. Registration is required.
The Symposium will begin on Sunday afternoon, June 21, with an approximately two-hour readthrough/rehearsal of the repertoire set with the band, which will be made up of the Symposium Participant/Conductors and Auditor/Observers, and local Sacramento musicians, conducted by our clinicians, Dr. John Lynch, Dr. Matthew Morse, and our Symposium Founder, Dr. Robert Halseth.
Following the rehearsal, we will have pizza and an informal meet-and-greet, where you will meet the clinicians, staff, and each other, and hear about the topics to be discussed during afternoon seminars Monday through Thursday
The Symposium will wrap up on Friday, June 26 following that morning’s rehearsal.
Info and Forms
The NorCal Wind Conducting Symposium will operate as a ‘day camp’ type activity, running 8:00am-4:30pm Monday-Thursday and ending early afternoon on Friday. Those participants coming from out of town will be responsible for their own travel and accommodations.
FEES
- $600 - for Participant/Conductor (limited to 20)
- $300 - for Auditor/Observer (unlimited)
REGISTER FOR THE SYMPOSIUM
Please complete the Google form asking for registration information. Contained in the Google form is a link to the payment site – please also ensure that you also complete the payment process to reserve your place as a Participant. Submission of both the Google registration form AND the payment are required to hold your spot for the Symposium.
Continuing Education Units will be available through the Sac State College of Continuing Education for attendance/participation in the NorCal Wind Conducting Symposium. Conductor/Participants will be eligible for 3 CEUs and Auditor/Observers will be eligible for 1.5 CEUs. Registration for these units will be taken care of as the Symposium ends and will incur an additional fee, payable through the Registrar’s office.
What to Expect
Mornings are devoted to podium time for Participant/Conductors with a 45-piece band. Each conductor will conduct the band daily for 10-15 minutes and have their session recorded. During conducting, one clinician provides audio comments on the recording while another works with the conductor in front of the ensemble. Each conductor will be in front of the band five times during the Symposium.
Afternoons will be spent in seminars and activities presented by our clinicians supporting a wide range of subjects pertaining to wind bands. All of this will happen in the School of Music’s Capistrano Hall on the beautiful 300-acre park-like Sacramento State campus in the heart of Sacramento.
For more information or further questions, please email Dr. Matthew Morse.
Repertoire List
We choose music in a variety of difficulty levels to accommodate teachers at different stages of conducting expertise.
Participant/Conductors will select up to five pieces/movements to conduct over the course of the week and can choose to repeat a work or movement.
| Composer | Title | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| Gordon Jacob | An Original Suite (three mvts) | 5 |
| William Schuman | George Washington Bridge (1st/2nd half) | 5 |
| Vincent Persichetti | Pageant | 4 |
| Leonard Bernstein | Candide Suite (trans. Grundman) (5 mvts) | 4 |
| Morten Lauridsen | O Magnum Mysterium | 4 |
| Aakash Mittal | Salt March | 4 |
| Cait Nishimura | Breath of the Mountains | 3.5 |
| Edward Elgar | Nimrod (arr. Reed) | 3.5 |
| Katahj Copley | Halcyon Hearts | 3 |
| Karl King | Circus Days (ed. Schissel) | 3 |
| Katherine Salfelder | Reminiscence | 2+ |
Parking
Parking is available in Parking Structure I, across the street from Capistrano Hall. Participants and Observers will need to pay daily for parking, either with a mobile web browser, mobile app, or at a kiosk on the fifth floor of the garage.
About Our Clinicians
Guest Clinician: Dr. John Lynch
Dr. John Lynch is a leading international wind conductor and a dual citizen of the United States and Australia. He is currently the Director of Bands and Professor of Music at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. He was formerly Director of Bands at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and Director of Bands and Professor of Music at the University of Georgia and the University of Kansas, and Associate Director of Bands at Northwestern University. He is the founder and artistic director of Sydney’s professional chamber orchestra: Verbrugghen Ensemble, and was the conductor of Chicago’s Northshore Concert Band, the Atlanta Youth Wind Symphony, and founder of the Greater New York Wind Symphony and the KU/Kansas City Youth Wind Symphony.
Dr. Lynch has performed throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, South America, Asia, and Australia including the national conferences of CBDNA, ABA and NAfME, WASBE, the Australian National Band and Orchestra Conference, Midwest, and Interlochen. A passionate advocate for new music he has commissioned, recorded, and premiered works from around the globe with a focus on diversity. He is a recording artist with Naxos and Klavier Records. Dr. Lynch is the recipient of the American Prize, the Georgia Creative Research Medal, the Stanbury Award for outstanding teaching and conducting, and a Northwestern University Searle Fellow for Teaching Excellence. He holds degrees from Indiana University, the Eastman School of Music and the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music.
Clinician/Host: Dr. Matthew Morse
Dr. Matthew Morse is currently in his ninth year as Director of Bands and Associate Professor of Conducting at Sacramento State, where he conducts the Symphonic Wind Ensemble and Concert Band, oversees the Marching Band, and teaches undergraduate and graduate conducting. He is also completed five seasons as the Music and Artistic Director for the Sacramento Symphonic Winds and is in demand as a guest conductor, clinician, and adjudicator.
Prior to his appointment at Sac State, Dr. Morse earned his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in wind conducting from the University of North Texas as a student of Eugene Migliaro Corporon, and a Master of Arts in Instrumental Conducting from Indiana University of Pennsylvania as a student of Dr. Jack Stamp. Dr. Morse also served for 25 years as a performing musician and bandmaster in the U.S. Army, culminating with his capstone assignment as Associate Bandmaster of the U.S. Military Academy Band at West Point, NY.