Giselle Wyers (she/her) is the Donald E. Peterson Endowed Professor of Choral Music at the University of Washington, where she conducts the award-winning University Chorale and teaches choral conducting and music education. Internationally recognized as a conductor, clinician, and educator, she is sought after for her work with collegiate, professional, and honor choirs. Recent projects include serving as Head Jury Member for the Busan International Choral Festival (Korea) and conducting the world premiere of The Lips of the Sky for chorus and string orchestra at Carnegie Hall.

 

Under Wyers' direction, the University of Washington Chorale, winner of the 2026 American Prize for performance, has earned a reputation for adventurous programming and interdisciplinary collaboration. Recent projects include performances with taiko artist Kenji Shomeda, Andrea Bocelli at Climate Pledge Arena, Imogen Heap at Benaroya Hall, art installations featuring Josh Faught and Presidential Medal of Arts recipient Ann Hamilton, and numerous appearances with the Seattle Symphony POPS. The ensemble toured four countries in Central Europe in 2024, performed at the 2024 ACDA Northwest Regional Conference, and returned to the 2026 conference in a collaborative performance of Considering Matthew Shepard. Their recordings include four commercially available albums, most recently Chasing Daybreak.

 

Wyers also conducts Concord Chamber Choir, an auditioned adult ensemble known for collaborations with living composers including Ēriks Ešenvalds, Timothy Takach, Moira Smiley, Robert Kyr, and Katerina Gimon. Her professional project choir, Solaris Vocal Ensemble, released the acclaimed album Floodsongs, featuring commissions by Meredith Monk, Ingram Marshall, Anne LeBaron, and Frances White. The recording received the American Prize Ernst Bacon Memorial Award for the Performance of American Music.

A frequent guest conductor, Wyers has led honor choirs and semi-professional ensembles throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe, with appearances at Lincoln Center and engagements in Germany, the Netherlands, Estonia, and Sweden. She has presented conducting pedagogy internationally, including invitations from the Trinity Laban Conservatoire, Örebro Universitet, the Latvian Academy of Music, Eastman School of Music, and the European Festival of Church Music.

 

As a composer, Wyers writes educational and concert repertoire published by Santa Barbara Music Publishing, GIA, MusicSpoke, earthsongs, and Hildegard Publishing. Her music has been performed internationally, including at Carnegie Hall and the ACDA National Conference, and she continues to mentor emerging conductors through teaching, scholarship, and international exchange initiatives.