Mr. Teaster, our choir music director and the music director and artistic director of the Sanctuary Concert Series, holds degrees from the North Carolina School of the Arts and Rice University's Shepherd School of Music, and completed further professional studies at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and the Pittsburgh Opera Center at Duquesne University. As a singer, he has performed with such groups as the Cincinnati Opera, Aspen Opera Theater, Pittsburgh Opera, Opera Theater of Pittsburgh, Des Moines Metro Opera/Opera Iowa, Chatham Baroque, and the Detroit Oratorio Society.
As a conductor, Mr. Teaster has worked in both choral and instrumental genres, as well as in musical theater venues. His local affiliations have included the Pittsburgh Playhouse at Point Park College, Pitt Repertory Theater, and Pittsburgh CLO Academy of Musical Theater/CLO Mini-Stars and CLO Cabaret Theater. Specializing in male choral repertoire, he has served as the conductor of the University of Pittsburgh Men's Glee Club for the past six years, and was previously the assistant conductor of the Cincinnati Men's Chorus for two seasons, where he also served as an arranger and accompanist for the group. Most recently, Mr. Teaster was appointed assistant director of choral organizations at Duquesne University, where he conducts the newly formed Pappert Men's Chorale.
In addition to his conducting, Mr. Teaster teaches a voice class at the University of Pittsburgh, as part of the basic musicianship curriculum, and also instructs private voice students. Furthermore, he works as a coach/accompanist for Carnegie Mellon University's musical theatre program at the School of Drama and works extensively with the junior class cabaret workshops. Mr. Teaster is also on the voice faculty for the CMU pre-college musical theatre summer program