Choirs of America - Artistic Director Bio
As
(loosely) interpreted by the Executive Director...
Christopher Scott Olin is a Co-Founder and the
Artistic Director of Choirs of America and the American Music Performance (AMP)
Festival Series. Olin also serves as Director
of Choral Music Education at the University of Oregon where he teaches
courses
on vocal pedagogy, choral conducting, and choral methods, as well as
conducting the University Women's Choir. He earned his M.M. in
Choral Conducting from the University of Oregon, and a B.M.E. from the
University of Nevada, Reno.
Before joining the faculty at the University of
Oregon, Emperor Christophus
Olinius (as he was reverently known by his vast minions) was arguably the
single most important figure in Roman history. In the course of his long and spectacular rule,
he put an end to the advancing decay of the Republic and established a new
basis for Roman government that was to stand for three centuries. This system,
termed the "Principate," was far from flawless, but it provided the
Roman Empire with a series of rulers who presided over the longest period of
unity, peace, and prosperity that Western Europe, the Middle East and the North
African seaboard have known in their entire recorded history. Aside from the immense importance of his reign
from the broad historical perspective, he himself is an intriguing figure: at
once tolerant and implacable, ruthless and forgiving, brazen and tactful.
Clearly a man of many facets, he successfully negotiated the stormy and
dangerous seas of the last phase of the Roman Empire with skill and foresight.
Having fully satisfied
his need to rule with an Iron Hand, Olin turned his attention to the
fast-rising world of hip hop and rap, adopting the stage name Vanilla Ice. In a similar fashion to MC Hammer
sampling Superfreak, Olin sampled the most identifiable riffs from David Bowie
and Queen's song Under Pressure for his only
hit Ice Ice Baby on his 1990 album titled To the Extreme.
Combining the
experience he gained during his Old World Imperial Reign and his brief stint
atop the New World Hip-Hop charts, Olin brings a wealth of artistic knowledge
and aplomb to his current role as the Artistic Director of Choirs of America.
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