Dr. Eric Rubinstein is Associate Director of the School of Music and Director of Choral Activities at Nazareth University, where he is the recipient of a 2024 Distinction in Teaching Award. His responsibilities include directing the Chamber Singers, teaching coursework in conducting and music education, and providing administrative leadership for a choral program of three ensembles. Prior to his appointment at Nazareth, Dr. Rubinstein served as Assistant Professor of Choral Music Education at the Aaron Copland School of Music, Queens College (CUNY).
Ensembles under Dr. Rubinstein's direction have presented performances in significant venues in the United States, England, and Poland, at regional and state conventions, and through recordings on the 1809 Studios label. He is a leader in synthesizing classical with vernacular styles, and has earned praised for his innovative collaborations. Career highlights include a partnership between the Nazareth Chamber Singers and the Department of Theatre and Dance, and various recognitions by The American Prize. Dr. Rubinstein has also led ensembles to invited performances for the Eastern Division Conference of the American Choral Directors' Association, the Eastern Division Conference of the National Association for Music Education, the NYSSMA State Music Educators' Conference, and the NY-ACDA State Conference.
Dr. Rubinstein’s scholarship and creative activity focus on the advancement of twenty-first century, progressive practices in choral music education. His work has appeared in such publications as Music Educators' Journal, The Choral Scholar, SmartMusic, and Anacrusis (Choral Canada), as well as through regional, national, and International conventions of NAfME, ACDA, College Music Society, and the International Society for Music Education (ISME).
Prior to doctoral studies, Dr. Rubinstein amassed a decade of high school teaching in Monticello and Westhampton Beach, NY, where he concurrently served on the music education faculty at CUNY Brooklyn College. Dr. Rubinstein has also served on the artistic faculty at the New York State Summer School of the Arts, and remains active as a guest conductor, clinician, and adjudicator for various choral festivals and conferences.
Additionally, Dr. Rubinstein enjoys a career as a professional solo and ensemble tenor. Favorite roles include Man 1 in Songs for a New World, Beadle Bamford in Sweeney Todd, Henrik Eggerman in A Little Night Music, and the title “role” in Craig Hella Johnsons’s passion-oratorio, Considering Matthew Shepard. He has also appeared with Red Shift Choir, the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, eVoco Voice Collective, and The New Musicals Project, and has worked with such notable artists as Craig Hella Johnson, Victoria Clark, and Kristin Chenoweth.
Dr. Rubinstein is a member of NAfME and ACDA, where he also serves as the New York- ACDA Repertoire & Resources co-chair for LGBTQIA+ Choral Music. He holds a D.M.A in Choral Conducting from Louisiana State University, a M.M. in Choral Conducting from Michigan State University, and a B.M. in Music Education from the State University of New York at Fredonia.
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