Aaron Garber is the Conductor and Music Director of the Jefferson Choral Society, the the Director of Music at College Lutheran Church in Salem, Virginia, and the Founder, Conductor, and Music Director of the Salem Choral Society.  In the past, Mr. Garber has served on the adjunct music faculty at Roanoke College.  He is an organist, pianist, tenor soloist, and plays the French Horn in addition to his conducting and composing.

World premieres under Mr. Garber’s baton have included his own major works Magnificat, Jesus, Son of Our Father, Job, Mass for Peace, and Mary, the Mother of Jesus, all scored for full orchestra, chorus, and soloists.  Other conducting credits include Handel’s Messiah, the Dubois’ Seven Last Words, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Pinkham’s Christmas Cantata, The Prince of Peace is Come by Christian Gregor, Rutter’s Gloria, the Fauré Requiem, the Duruflé Requiem, and the Mozart Requiem.  Upcoming premieres include a commissioned work by the Lynchburg Symphony Orchestra in May, 2011 and a commissioned work by the Masterworks Chorus of the Shenandoah Valley and the Arts Academy Chorale of Winchester in April, 2011.

            Mr. Garber won the 2001 Raymond W. Brock Student Composition Contest, a national contest held in conjunction with the American Choral Directors Association.  The winning composition, Stabat Mater, an a cappella choral work, was premiered at the ACDA National Convention in San Antonio, Texas in March, 2001.  The compositions of Aaron Garber have been heard throughout the United States and abroad and he is published by Concordia Publishing House and Augsburg Fortress Publishers.

Aaron Garber holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music from Bridgewater College, VA, where he was named 2007 Young Alumnus of the Year.  He also has a Master of Music in Choral Conducting from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.  In 2007, Mr. Garber was chosen for Who’s Who in America and the City of Salem named May 6, 2007 “Aaron Garber Day."