James Burton
Director of Orchestral Activities and Master Lecturer, Music
Celebrated Boston Symphony Orchestra Choral Director James Burton is the Director of Orchestral Activities at Boston University College of Fine Arts School of Music and master lecturer at CFA. In this role at BU, Burton oversees CFA School of Music’s orchestra repertoires, performances, and stewardship of the College’s orchestral education.
In 2017 Burton moved from his native UK to Boston to take up the position of Boston Symphony Orchestra Choral Director, a new post created for him. He is the Conductor of the orchestra’s Tanglewood Festival Chorus and is a frequent collaborator with Andris Nelsons and Keith Lockhart, as well as the BSO’s world leading guest conductors. He has been a regular guest conductor with the Boston Pops Orchestra, and in 2018 he founded the Boston Symphony Children’s Choir. Burton is an integral member of the core artistic leadership team with the BSO and he brings tremendous musical and creative resources with him to his position at BU.
Burton received his Master of Music in Orchestral Conducting from Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University in 1998, studying under Frederik Prausnitz and Gustav Meier. He earned his Bachelor of Arts (Music) in 1995, and Master of Arts (Music) in 1996 from St John’s College, Cambridge University.
