Mark Olson, Guest Conductor
Mark Olson is currently the Assistant Director of Band at Harvard University where he conducts the Harvard Wind Ensemble, the Sunday Jazz Band and serves as advisor to the Harvard University Band. Prior to his appointment at Harvard, Mr. Olson was Visiting Professor and Interim Director of Bands at Graceland University in Iowa. He was a music educator for nine years in Minnesota before beginning graduate studies at the University of Minnesota. Olson has been a guest conductor and clinician for bands in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Minnesota, North Dakota, and Iowa. Recently he served as Interim Conductor of the Cambridge Symphony for their 2005-2006 season.
Olson received his B.M. degree from Concordia College in Moorhead, Mn. He earned an M. A. degree in Music Education and is currently completing a Ph.D. in Music from the University of Minnesota. His conducting teachers have included Craig Kirchhoff and J. Robert Hanson.
In addition to teaching and conducting, Olson is an active trumpet performer. He is a current member of the Metropolitan Wind Symphony and a former member of the Charles River Wind Ensemble, the Mankato Symphony Orchestra, Austin Symphony Orchestra, and Winona Brass Band. He has studied trumpet with David Baldwin, Gary Bordner, and J. Robert Hanson.
