Dan Perkins is Professor Emeritus at Plymouth State University, where he was professor of music and director of choral activities for 29 years and in 2007 was honored with the Stevens-Bristow Distinguished Professorship. Dr. Perkins is also music director of the Manchester Choral Society and has served as the principal guest conductor of the Vietnam National Opera and Ballet in Hanoi, New Hampshire Music Festival,  guest conductor of the Dartmouth Concertato Singers, Dartmouth Handel Society, and as the music director of the Hanover Chamber Orchestra and New Hampshire Friendship Chorus. Perkins’ choirs have performed and studied in Canada, England, Peru, Chile, Vietnam, South Africa, Italy, Poland, Hungary, Slovak Republic, Austria, South Korea, Brazil, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, Morocco, Portugal, Bulgaria, Cuba, Colombia, Ecuador, Ireland, Georgia, Armenia, Spain, Iceland, and throughout the United States and Puerto Rico.  

 

A passionate advocate for new music, Perkins’ ensembles have premiered over 30 works by composers including Jonathan Santore, Oliver Caplan, Michael Bussewitz-Quarm, John Ratledge, and Kim Andre Arnesen.

 

He holds the degrees Doctor of Musical Arts and Master of Music in Choral Music from the University of Southern California, and Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from Brigham Young University. He continued his studies as a Fulbright scholar in Helsinki, Finland. While there, he worked as the associate conductor of the Finnish Chamber Choir and associate conductor of the Savonlinna Opera Festival Chorus.