2024 Reynolds Conducting Institute Fellow

Meet Jacob Wallace

Jacob Wallace is passionately committed to the performance of contemporary instrumental music. His efforts to present innovative and approachable programming of new works have brought modern trends to atypical places, with performances being lauded by audiences and professionals alike. Ensembles under his direction have presented world, national, and regional premieres of works by many talented and diverse composers. Dr. Wallace is currently on the faculty of South Dakota State University, where he serves as Associate Professor of Music and Director of Concert Bands. In this capacity, he conducts the Wind Symphony; teaches coursework in conducting, literature, and education; and administrates the wind ensemble activities of the School of Performing Arts as a whole. Prior to this, he served as Director of Bands at Southeastern Oklahoma State University. From 2013-2015, he served on the conducting faculty of the Cortona Sessions for New Music in Tuscany, Italy. His research in the area of diversifying composer representation in large ensemble programming has been presented at The Midwest Clinic, national conferences of the College Band Directors National Association, and other workshops and conventions and he has served on the Advisory Council of the Institute for Composer Diversity. He was named the winner of The American Prize in Conducting in 2019, and the SDSU Wind Symphony under his direction has received two national placements for The American Prize in 2023. In 2024, the SDSU Wind Symphony was honored with an invitation to perform as a featured ensemble at the North Central Divisional Conference of the College Band Directors National Association. Dr. Wallace holds degrees from The University of Georgia, Baylor University, and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He remains active as an adjudicator, conductor, and clinician throughout the United States and maintains professional affiliations with the College Band Directors National Association, the National Association for Music Education, and the South Dakota Bandmasters Association. He is a member of the Phi Beta Mu International Bandmasters Fraternity as well as the Pi Kappa Lambda music honor society and holds honorary membership in the Tau Beta Sigma National Honorary Band Service Sorority and the Kappa Kappa Psi National Honorary Band Fraternity. Occasionally, he posts band selfies on Instagram using the handle @jwconductor.