Bruce Olstad, 
Chorus Master

It is his seventh season on the artistic staff of Opera San José, where he has served as vocal coach and rehearsal pianist for such operas as Falstaff, Manon, Madame Butterfly, Faust, Il trovatore and Die Zauberflöte. In addition to his duties at Opera San José, Mr. Olstad has served as vocal coach and pianist for the opera workshop at San José State University as well as for the Opera Institute of California. Recent engagements include assistant conductor for the West Coast premiere of Our Town.  

Prior to moving from Los Angeles in 2000, Mr. Olstad was a faculty member at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, where he served as vocal coach and accompanist for the opera workshop, as accompanist for the nationally acclaimed choral program, and as instructor in musicianship classes.  In 1999, Mr. Olstad was awarded an opera coaching fellowship to the Aspen Music School, where he studied with Armen Guzelimian, Ken Merrill and Rita Sloan, among others.  He holds a Masters Degree in Keyboard Collaborative Arts from USC and Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from UCLA.  Mr. Olstad currently serves on and was past President of the Board of Directors of Pacific Serenades, one of Los Angeles’ premier chamber music series, dedicated to the commissioning of new works and championing of local Southern California talent.  In addition, he is also currently a member of the Board of Directors of the South Pasadena-based Celestial Opera Company, where he served for two seasons as Musical Director, Chorus Master and pianist.