Timothy W. Foo, chair of the Board of Trustees of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, announced today that David H. Stull has been appointed president of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. He will assume the position on July 1, 2013. David H. Stull is currently dean of the Conservatory and professor of brass studies at Oberlin College, where he has exhibited great vision with a passionate commitment to artistic excellence and the creation of academic programs that prepare musicians for successful careers in the ever-changing cultural and economic environment of the 21st century.

Stull comes to San Francisco with a demonstrated record of decisive leadership skills, financial acumen and academic creativity, together with a dedication to the highest artistic standards. At Oberlin, he helped secure over $40 million in donations, including $21 million for The Kohl Building, a project spearheaded to completion entirely under his leadership, an additional $14 million for dedicated professorships, program support, scholarships, gifts-in-kind, and pilot grants, while securing collections and instrument donations that exceed $8 million in value. During his tenure, the Conservatory launched a series of new programs, including an intensive entrepreneurship curriculum, a new record label, and fully sponsored orchestral tours to Carnegie Hall, Walt Disney Concert Hall and the People’s Republic of China. He also secured the resources for a world class recording studio and a series of artistic initiatives, including a Grammy®-nominated recording. Most recently he launched Music in America, a critically acclaimed program to provide music education to underserved schools throughout the Nation.  

In addition to providing rigorous professional training, these added endeavors were created to furnish young artists with the intellectual capacity, career management skills and professional experience necessary to prepare them for thriving careers in the 21st century. In recognition of the success of its comprehensive and cutting-edge academic programming and contributions to American education, President Barack Obama presented the Oberlin Conservatory of Music with the National Medal of Arts, which Dean Stull accepted on behalf of the institution in February 2010.

“David Stull is a proven educator whose initiative and relentless drive will help us build on the critical growth which occurred at the Conservatory during the presidency of Colin Murdoch,” says Timothy W. Foo, chair of the Board of Trustees of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.  “The Board is unanimous in its belief that David’s inspiring leadership will guide the Conservatory through its centennial celebration in 2017 and beyond. His pioneering spirit matches the current boom of cultural growth in the San Francisco Bay Area and the needs of this institution. He will preserve the school’s distinctive character, yet develop its resources to shape a world-class conservatory that equips musicians fully for the demands of a new century. This appointment is the culmination of an extensive process undertaken by the Search Committee, with assistance from trustees, faculty and staff. I commend their hard work and dedication. On behalf of the Conservatory community, I welcome David as a colleague, a leader and a friend.”

David Stull commented – “I am privileged and honored to be joining the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Their commitment to building an array of highly inventive programs that will catalyze a powerful core mission and a great faculty has inspired me to accept this position. Our collective ambition is to build the most innovative professional music school in the world, one that provides a transformative education of peerless excellence and launches highly successful artists and individuals who are educated for life. The culture of creating the future is palpable in San Francisco, and this energy conjoined with the potential of the Conservatory of Music is tremendously exciting."

Frederica von Stade, an honorary doctor of music of the Conservatory and member of its Trustee Advisory Board who was introduced to David Stull as a featured speaker at the Business Innovation Factory, noted:  “I am thrilled that the Board of Directors has chosen David Stull as its next President.  I was fortunate to hear an interview with Mr. Stull in which he spoke of the importance of offering the gift of music to all communities of the city through a concentrated outreach program.  In my several years of working with children who were not likely to receive music instruction, I have seen how music is a life altering experience, for everyone, student and teacher.  Who better to look to in our musical community than the San Francisco Conservatory?  Blessings to all those who treasure this institution and a warm welcome to Mr. Stull.”

David Stull is professor of brass studies at Oberlin College and dean of the Conservatory, a position he has held since 2004. As dean, Stull is the chief academic officer of its Conservatory, where he leads an institution consisting of over 600 students and 120 faculty and staff members. Before his tenure as dean, Stull was associate dean of the Oberlin Conservatory from 2000-2004.

From 1993-2000, Stull held positions at Lawrence University’s Conservatory of Music in Appleton, Wisconsin, as a member of the brass faculty, director of conservatory admissions, and ultimately assistant dean. Stull was also associate director of admissions for The Juilliard School from 1990-1993.

A professional tubist, Stull has performed with the Milwaukee Ballet, the Bravo Colorado Music Festival, the Oberlin Brass Quintet, the American Brass Quintet Seminar, and the Aspen Festival Orchestra, among others. He has toured the United States and Europe, and has appeared on Live from Lincoln Center, as well as in numerous performances at venues such as Alice Tully Hall, Town Hall, and Merkin Hall. He has also recorded for commercial radio and television. As a teacher, his students have been highly successful, and have been heard as guests in the Houston and Seattle Symphony orchestras. Mr. Stull has given master classes throughout the United States and abroad.

Stull has been a guest speaker at numerous institutions ranging from The Juilliard School, to the Interlochen Arts Academy, most recently appearing at the Business Innovation Factory and the University of North Texas’ Leadership Conference. He has been heard on Public Radio International’s From the Top, National Public Radio’s Performance Today, and WCLV/WVIZ radio in Ohio.  He has judged competitions for the University of Illinois, Oberlin Conservatory, Midwest Young Artists and The Juilliard School’s Pre-College program. He has also been a consultant for numerous arts organizations.

A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Stull earned degrees in tuba performance and English literature at Oberlin College. He attended the Aspen Music Festival and pursued further study at The Juilliard School in the American Brass Quintet program before completing an M.M. at the University of Wisconsin at Madison.

David will move to San Francisco with his wife, Jessica Downs, and their two daughters Madeline and Emily. To learn more about the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and David H. Stull, please visit www.sfcm.edu.

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About the San Francisco Conservatory of Music
Founded in 1917, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music is the oldest conservatory in the American West and has earned an international reputation for producing musicians of the highest caliber. Notable alumni include Yehudi Menuhin, Isaac Stern, Jeffrey Kahane, Aaron Jay Kernis and Robin Sutherland, among others. The Conservatory offers its more than 400 collegiate students fully accredited bachelor’s and master’s degree programs in composition and instrumental and vocal performance. Its Preparatory Division provides exceptionally high standards of musical excellence and personal attention to more than 550 younger students. The Conservatory’s faculty and students give nearly 500 public performances each year, most of which are offered to the public at no charge. Its community outreach programs serve over 1,600 school children and over 11,000 members of the wider community who are otherwise unable to hear live performances. The Conservatory’s Civic Center facility is an architectural and acoustical masterwork, and the Caroline H. Hume Concert Hall was lauded by the New York Times as the “most enticing classical-music setting” in the San Francisco Bay Area.

The Conservatory was the first school in the country to offer master's degrees in chamber music and in classical guitar. Its Historical Performance program includes emphases and degrees in period practice and benefits from a full period instrument orchestra. The performance and creation of new music enjoys a distinguished tradition, particularly represented in prominent faculty composers ranging from Ernest Bloch, director of the School from 1925-1930, to Andrew Imbrie and John Adams, winner of the Pulitzer Prize. Now in its 10th season, the Conservatory’s new music series, BluePrint, commissions, premieres and revisits contemporary music from around the world.

San Francisco Conservatory of Music Presidents/Directors

Ada Clement and Lillian Hodghead      917-1925
Ernest Bloch                                        1925-1930
Ada Clement and Lillian Hodghead     1930-1951
Albert Elkus                                         1951-1957
Robin Laufer                                       1957-1966
Milton Salkind                                      1966-1990
Stephen Brown                                   1990-1991
Milton Salkind (Acting Director)            991-1992
Colin Murdoch                                     1992-2013