CCM doctoral student appointed as May Festival Conducting Fellow

Max Trombley. Photo/provided.

Since 2013, the Cincinnati May Festival has partnered with CCM's choral conducting department each year to select a Fellow from the doctor of musical arts (DMA) class. The unique partnership was established through the generous support of Ginger Warner, a University of Cincinnati trustee and Director Emeritus of the May Festival Board of Directors.

"I am thrilled to work with the May Festival Chorus as the next Choral Conducting Fellow," said Trombley. "To be a part of the oldest choral festival in the Western Hemisphere is truly an honor, and I'm excited to be able to connect the community with the highest quality performances of great music."

Trombley will directly assist Director of Choruses Matthew Swanson and Associate Director of Choruses Jason Alexander Holmes with leading the May Festival Chorus as well as all operations of a major symphonic choral organization. Trombley will also work alongside esteemed industry professionals, including this year's May Festival Director, Julia Bullock, to support a successful classical music festival, which is consistently named "One of the Best Classical Music Festivals in the USA and Canada" by BBC Music Magazine.

Before beginning his graduate studies, Trombley taught secondary choral music in Michigan public schools and coordinated state-level honors choirs and adjudication festivals for the Michigan School Vocal Music Association. As a vocalist, he has performed internationally and with major American orchestras, has performed at the Spoleto Festival USA and currently serves as a VOCES8 U.S. Scholar. In addition to his work as a performer and educator, Trombley is a member of the summer voice faculty and managerial staff at Interlochen Center for the Arts.

"I am excited to welcome Max Trombley to the May Festival. Max's extensive experience as a performer and choral leader will greatly benefit this year's programs and events. We look forward to all that he will achieve with the May Festival chorus, CCM, and in our broader community," said May Festival Director of Choruses Matthew Swanson.

"Max Trombley will be an invaluable individual to add to the May Festival's artistic team this year," said May Festival Executive Director Julianne Akins Smith. "We are eager to welcome him to this important program ─ aligning his experience, expertise and passion with our organizational goals. We are confident he will join the twelve other former Fellows who have gone on to leave an incredible mark in the world of choral music!"

• Andrew Miller: 2024-25
• Sergey Tkachenko: 2023-24
• Christin Sears: 2022-23
• Matthew Swope: 2021-22
• Henry Cecil: 2020-21
• Joseph Taff: 2019-20
• Jennifer Jun: 2018-19
• Daniel Parsley: 2017-18
• Matthew Swanson: 2016-17
• Minhye Jang: 2015-16
• Daniel Blosser: 2014-15
• Marie Bucoy-Calavan: 2013-14

Maxwell Trombley is a Doctor of Musical Arts candidate in Choral Conducting at the CCM, where he studies with Joe Miller, DMA, and Brett Scott, DMA. He also serves as the 2025-26 Choral Conducting Fellow with the Cincinnati May Festival.

He began his graduate studies at the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami and later transferred with Dr. Amanda Quist to Western Michigan University, where he earned a Master of Music degree in Choral Conducting. Trombley also holds a Bachelor of Music Education degree from Eastern Michigan University.

Before beginning graduate study, Trombley taught secondary choral music in Michigan public schools for four years. His choirs consistently earned excellent ratings at state festivals and toured nationally. He also served the Michigan School Vocal Music Association by coordinating state-level honors choirs and solo and ensemble events.

As a vocalist, Trombley has performed internationally and with major American orchestras, including the New York Philharmonic, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, New World Symphony, Palm Beach Symphony and Toledo Symphony Orchestra. He currently serves as a 2025-26 VOCES8 U.S. Scholar and has performed with Seraphic Fire as a member of its early artist program. He has also appeared as a chorus fellow at the Spoleto Festival USA and as an invited artist at the Bay View Music Festival.

In 2024, Trombley was awarded a field research grant from the University of Miami's Institute for Advanced Study of the Americas, to support his work reviving the music of 19th-century Puerto Rican composer Felipe Gutiérrez y Espinosa. He was also named a semi-finalist for the 2025-26 Fulbright U.S. student program for a proposed project to study choral conducting in the United Kingdom.

In addition to his work as a vocalist and educator, Trombley is an experienced conductor with a strong background in sacred music. He recently served as director of music at First Congregational Church in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and is a member of the summer voice faculty and managerial staff at Interlochen Center for the Arts.