Our Artistic Director
Artistic Director Susan McMane is a world-renowned choral conductor specializing in treble choral music. From 2001 to 2012, she served as Artistic Director of the San Francisco Girls Chorus, where she oversaw the music education of girls age 5 through 18 and achieved national and international acclaim for Chorissima, its concert, recording, and touring chorus. Most recently, under her leadership, her chorus of girls ages 12 to 16 placed second in the youth category of the international competition Let the Peoples Sing, held in Manchester, England. It was the first time a U.S. choir won the right to sing in this prestigious competition. In 2009, her reputation for excellence in youth choral music helped land the SFGC an invitation to sing on the U.S. Capitol steps at the swearing-in ceremony of President Barack Obama.
Dr. McMane has prepared her choirs for performances with many leading symphonic conductors such as Michael Tilson Thomas, Helmut Rilling, Robert Spano, Charles Dutoit, Nicholas McGegan, and Kurt Masur. In addition, she personally has conducted ensembles on tour nationally and internationally throughout Europe and Asia including France, Spain, Italy, England, Wales, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, Japan, South Korea, and China. In 2011, she was invited to bring her chorus to Cuba, on a cultural exchange mission granted by the U.S. and Cuban governments.
Dr. McMane has won many awards for her work including three GRAMMY® Awards with the San Francisco Symphony and the 2007 “Symphony of Excellence Arts Award” from the Pacific Musical Society. In addition she won honors at the International Eisteddfod competition in Llangollen, Wales, in 1998 and that year was also named the “Music Educator of the Year” by the St. Louis Chapter of the American Guild of Organists. To promote and advance choral music for treble voices, Dr. McMane is responsible for commissioning over 20 new works from prominent composers such as Chen Yi, Tania Leon, Augusta Read Thomas, Frank La Rocca, David Conte, Alberto Grau, and many more. She is a two-time recipient of the ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming.
She earned a Doctorate of Musical Arts in Choral Conducting from the Conservatory of Music, University of Missouri-Kansas City, and holds two degrees in Vocal Performance.