Conductor Bio

Jessica Morel

guest conductor

Hailed as being “masterfully in charge on the podium,” Jessica Morel leads a multifaceted conducting career, having led from the podium in many different capacities. As a professional orchestral conductor, Jessica has guestconducted the Charlotte Symphony, Oklahoma City Philharmonic, Amarillo Symphony, Spartanburg Philharmonic, Evansville Philharmonic, Abilene Philharmonic, Charlotte Ballet (The Nutcracker), and she recently led a Masterworks concert with the Rock Hill Symphony.

From 2016 to 2019, Jessica served as the Assistant Conductor for the Winston-Salem Symphony. In this role, she led many classics, pops, educational, family, and community concerts, and during her final season, she conducted over half of the Winston-Salem Symphony’s total performances. Additionally, Jessica has served as a cover conductor for the Jacksonville, Memphis, Portland, and Charlotte Symphony Orchestras.

A passionate music educator, Jessica Morel was appointed to the position of Music Director of the Greater Princeton Youth Orchestra in July 2021, where she currently leads both the Symphonic and Concert Orchestras. Her previous work as a youth orchestra conductor includes two seasons as a conductor for the Charlotte Symphony Youth Orchestras Program and three seasons as the Music Director of the Winston-Salem Symphony Youth Orchestras Program, which saw significant growth under her leadership. Additionally, Jessica served as the Visiting Director of Orchestral Activities at the University of Evansville in 2015-16.

Frequently in demand as a clinician and music educator, Jessica has conducted multiple All-County Honors Orchestras in North Carolina, as well as opera and musical theater productions for High Point University, Texas Women’s University, and the University of North Texas. She currently serves as an Adjunct Music Instructor at Seton Hall University and teaches at the Honors Music Program at the Westminster Conservatory of Music.

Previously Jessica Morel had the honor of with being named a competition winner of the 2014 International Conductors’ Workshop and Competition in Atlanta, and was also chosen as the Assistant Conductor for the Hot Springs Music Festival in 2015. She has studied at many competitive summer music programs, including the Eastern Music Festival with Gerard Schwarz, the Cabrillo Festival with Marin Alsop, the Atlantic Music Festival, and internationally she has conducted orchestras in Ukraine, Hungary, and the Czech Republic.

Jessica earned her doctorate in orchestral conducting from the University of North Texas under the guidance of David Itkin and Clay Couturiaux, her master’s degree in orchestral conducting from the University of Nevada Las Vegas under Taras Krysa, and her bachelor’s in music education from Indiana University, where she studied flute with Kathryn Lukas. In addition to flute, Jessica also enjoys playing the piano and the violin.