John Emory Bush, Artistic Director and Conductor of the Valley Concert Chorale since 1998, began musical studies at the age of seven in his native Michigan. Trained as a conductor, pianist, organist, and harpist, he holds a Bachelor’s degree from Albion College in Michigan and a Master’s degree from the Juilliard School of Music. Mr. Bush has been privileged to study or coach with the distinguished conductors Leonard Bernstein, Erich Leinsdorf, Helmuth Rilling and Robert Shaw. In 1988, he was one of five musicians (and the only American) to be invited to study conducting with Antal Dorati in Bern and Basel, Switzerland. He has studied with the renowned organists Joan Lippincott and the late Albert Fuller and Leonard Raver.

Mr. Bush was a member of the vocal coaching and accompanying staff at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and Director of Choral Activities at Notre Dame de Namur University in Belmont. In addition to his position as Artistic Director and Conductor of the Valley Concert Chorale, Mr. Bush served as Artistic Director and Conductor of the San Francisco Concert Chorale and is Principal Organist at the First United Methodist Church in McKinney, Texas. For ten years, Mr. Bush directed the music program at the Episcopal Cathedral in Dallas. He continues to divide his time between the Bay Area and Dallas, contributing to both musical communities.