matorres@sewanee.edu
Assistant Professor of Music, Conductor of the Sewanee Symphony Orchestra
B.S., B.M., and M.M., Northwestern State University of Louisana, M.M., Ithaca College, D.M.A., University of Washington.
Guerry Hall 121
735 University Avenue
Sewanee, TN 37383
931-598-1445
Dr. Mario Alejandro Torres is a conductor, teacher, and violist who hails from San Pedro Sula, Honduras. He currently serves as Assistant Professor of Music at the University of the South, where he directs the Sewanee Symphony Orchestra and teaches courses such as Musics of Latin America, Episodes in “Classical” Music and Applied Viola.
Before joining Sewanee, Dr. Torres served as Music Director and Conductor of the Bainbridge Symphony Orchestra for four seasons and led the Poulsbo Community Orchestra for three. He has also worked with ensembles including Philharmonia Northwest, Seattle Festival Orchestra, Bellevue Youth Symphony Orchestra, and Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra.
In Seattle, Dr. Torres made his Benaroya Hall debut with the University of Washington Symphony Orchestra, collaborating with Maestros Ludovic Morlot and David Alexander Rahbee. He was twice awarded conducting fellowships with the Seattle Symphony, where he assisted Maestro Morlot and worked with guest artists such as Hilary Hahn and Pulitzer Prize–winning composer John Luther Adams.
A dedicated advocate for music education and social impact, Dr. Torres is an active clinician and guest conductor with youth and high school orchestras nationwide. He has also worked internationally, collaborating with the National Music School of Suriname (Paramaribo) and the Music Academy Occide Jeanty (Croix-des-Bouquets, Haiti), bringing access to music-making as a tool for empowerment and inclusion.
As a violist, Dr. Torres has appeared as a soloist with the Chamber Orchestra of San Pedro Sula, the NSULA Symphony and Chamber Orchestras, the Rapides Symphony Orchestra, and at the Monteux School and Music Festival. He has performed with ensembles including Symphoria, the Shreveport Symphony, and the Costa Rica National Symphony Orchestra, and toured internationally with the Youth Orchestra of the Americas throughout Europe.
Dr. Torres holds triple bachelor’s degrees in Viola Performance, Business Administration, and Computer Information Systems, as well as an M.M. in Viola Performance from Northwestern State University of Louisiana. He later completed an M.M. in Orchestral Conducting at Ithaca College and the D.M.A. in Orchestral Conducting at the University of Washington. Additionally, he is a graduate of the Global Leaders Program, which provides specialized training in community leadership, teaching artistry, and social entrepreneurship.
Areas of Expertise
*Orchestral, chamber, and instrumental music direction and performance
*Viola performance and pedagogy
*Classical period style, interpretation, and performance practice
*Latin American music
*Music leadership and community engagement
Inquiring Minds, Sewanee
https://new.sewanee.edu/inquiring-minds/what-a-conductor-does/
