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Jonathan Talberg is an American choral conductor and educator best known for building the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music’s choirs into internationally decorated ensembles. He serves as CSULB’s Director of Choral Activities, leading the Bob Cole Conservatory Chamber Choir and University Choir, and holds the Frank M. Pooler endowed professorship—the College of the Arts’ first endowed faculty post. A past president of the California Choral Directors Association, Talberg has been recognized by the California Music Educators Association with its President’s Award for "extraordinary accomplishments in music education."

Under Talberg’s direction, the Chamber Choir won the "Choir of the World" title and Pavarotti Trophy at the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod (Wales) and took first prize at the Internationaler Chorwettbewerb in Spittal, Austria. His ensembles tour widely and appear with leading arts organizations; among high-profile collaborations are performances with the Los Angeles Master Chorale, Pacific Symphony, the Kronos Quartet, and the Rolling Stones (including Staples Center and Petco Park appearances on "You Can’t Always Get What You Want"). Touring has taken his choirs to major venues across Europe and Asia, such as the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter’s Basilica, and Beijing’s Great Hall of the People.

Talberg’s path to the podium began in Southern California. He first enrolled at Pepperdine University as a theatre arts major, then—after a formative conversation with legendary conductor Roger Wagner—shifted decisively toward choral music and transferred to Chapman University, where he earned a BM in choral conducting and was later honored as the College of Performing Arts’ Alumnus of the Year (2014). Graduate studies followed at the University of Cincinnati College–Conservatory of Music (CCM), where he completed the MM and DMA in choral conducting and a postdoctoral conducting fellowship with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Pops, and the May Festival Chorus. His principal teachers and mentors include Roger Wagner, William Hall, Earl Rivers, John Leman, Elmer Thomas, and Jesús López Cobos.

Before entering higher education full time, Talberg taught high school choral music and drama for five years (including work at the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts), and served as conducting assistant to the Cincinnati Symphony and at the Aspen Music Festival. He was principal choral conductor at Arrowbear Music Camp and later became Director of Music at First Congregational Church of Los Angeles, where he also led the historic Los Angeles Bach Festival. He joined the CSULB faculty in 2000, beginning a tenure that has encompassed artistic leadership, international touring, and a sustained commitment to mentoring young artists.

Beyond campus, Talberg’s influence spans the region’s choral ecosystem. He was artistic director of the Long Beach Camerata Singers where he added a core of professional singers and led a European tour in 2006. A frequent all-state and honor choir conductor and clinician nationwide, he also serves as an editor with Pavane Publishing, which issues a curated Jonathan Talberg Series of collegiate-level choral works.

Talberg is widely regarded as a mentor who launches singers and conductors into professional life. Alumni of the Bob Cole Conservatory choirs and choral studies program now teach across the country and perform with major opera companies, including the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Cincinnati Opera, and LA Opera. Recent university features highlight his continued program-building—international tours, recordings, and initiatives like CSULB’s Gospel Music Week.