BIOGRAPHY
Credit: Erielle Bakkum Photography
James Kallembach’s chamber music and choral works have been widely performed throughout North America. He has received honors from ASCAP, ACDA, American Composers’ Forum, Pacific Chorale, ALEAIII in Boston, and VocalEssence, whose Welcome Christmas concert featured his carol, That Yönge Child in a nationally syndicated radio broadcast. James has written extensively for the voice, including a catalogue of dozens of individual choral works including St. John Passion, (Roven Records), Most Sacred Body (Loft Recordings/Gothic), Antigone: The Writings of Sophie Scholl (New Focus Recordings) which was named Opera News' 2022 Critics Choice, Easter Oratorio, and more. His vast song catalogue includes Weightless Dreams, for soprano and piano, commissioned and premiered by Tamara Wilson, Anne Bradstreet Songs for soprano and cello, Songs on Letters of John and Abigail Adams for baritone, mezzo-soprano, and string quartet, and his cycle Four Romantic Songs ("New Voices", Roven Records), which was praised for their "Straussian sweep". (Opera News). While permeated by a deeper layer of symbolic meaning and musical structure, his music is immediately accessible to audiences and performers alike, often being described as lyrical, beautiful, and moving; challenging, yet well suited to the instrument.
As conductor, James has performed a vast amount of the canonic literature of all periods, including all of the major oratorios of J.S. Bach. His music is in perpetual dialogue with great music of the past, and often centers on the quest for spiritual meaning, such as his large choral works Ave Maria and The Quest of the Holy Grail. Many of his recent projects also explore the emotional content and meaning found in American history, such as his Songs on Letters of John and Abigail Adams, Anne Bradstreet Songs, choral and solo vocal works based on texts in George Halpert’s 1938 New England folksong archive, and his opera based on the trial of the Puritan Anne Hutchinson, commissioned by Harvard University and premiering in 2025.
A tireless advocate of new choral works, James has conducted the premiere of works by William Bolcom, Marta Ptaszynska, Sven-David Sandström, Robert Moran, Shulamit Ran, Robert Kyr, and James MacMillan among many others, including emerging composers. His interpretation of new music has been heralded as “rich and polished” (Chicago Classical Review). Highlights in addition to his conducting activities include serving as artistic director for the Sounds of Faith documentary concert aired on Chicago PBS, lecturing at the Oregon Bach Festival and conducting new works at the Oregon Bach Festival Composers’ Symposium, and articles for Opera News and Choral Journal. James serves as Senior Lecturer in Music and Director of Choral Activities, where he conducts the Motet Choir, and as Director of Chapel Music and conducts the Chapel Choir at Rockefeller Memorial Chapel, at the University of Chicago.
As conductor, James has performed a vast amount of the canonic literature of all periods, including all of the major oratorios of J.S. Bach. His music is in perpetual dialogue with great music of the past, and often centers on the quest for spiritual meaning, such as his large choral works Ave Maria and The Quest of the Holy Grail. Many of his recent projects also explore the emotional content and meaning found in American history, such as his Songs on Letters of John and Abigail Adams, Anne Bradstreet Songs, choral and solo vocal works based on texts in George Halpert’s 1938 New England folksong archive, and his opera based on the trial of the Puritan Anne Hutchinson, commissioned by Harvard University and premiering in 2025.
A tireless advocate of new choral works, James has conducted the premiere of works by William Bolcom, Marta Ptaszynska, Sven-David Sandström, Robert Moran, Shulamit Ran, Robert Kyr, and James MacMillan among many others, including emerging composers. His interpretation of new music has been heralded as “rich and polished” (Chicago Classical Review). Highlights in addition to his conducting activities include serving as artistic director for the Sounds of Faith documentary concert aired on Chicago PBS, lecturing at the Oregon Bach Festival and conducting new works at the Oregon Bach Festival Composers’ Symposium, and articles for Opera News and Choral Journal. James serves as Senior Lecturer in Music and Director of Choral Activities, where he conducts the Motet Choir, and as Director of Chapel Music and conducts the Chapel Choir at Rockefeller Memorial Chapel, at the University of Chicago.