Bios

Syrian conductor and cellist Dr. Ghyas Zeidieh is an active musician and educator coming from the Iowa and Illinois region. Previously he served as the Assistant Professor of Orchestral Studies at Coe College in Cedar Rapids, IA. In addition, Zeidieh serves as the music director at the Cedar Rapids Community Orchestra (IA), Northern Utah Youth Chamber Orchestra conductor, and is on the faculty at Utah State University in the string department. He earned his Doctor of Musical Arts and master’s degree from the University of Iowa, and has degrees in Music and Dentistry from the Damascus Conservatory and University.

A passionate educator for all ages, Zeidieh has served as Instructor of Cello at Western Illinois University and was a member of the faculty Julstrom String Quartet. He has completed training in the Suzuki Association method in addition to teaching Orchestra in the Iowa City (IA) Community School District. Zeidieh is the former Program Coordinator at the Harmony School of Music, an El Sistema program in Iowa, and has also served as the Music Director for the Dubuque (IA) Symphony Youth String Ensemble and Philharmonia from 2019-2022. An active orchestral musician, Ghyas has played with many orchestras in the Middle East, including the National Syrian Orchestra, Syrian Philharmonic Orchestra, the Arab Youth Orchestra, and the Euro-Med Orchestra, can be heard on several Syrian film scores, and is a member of the Dubuque Symphony cello section. He has performed with numerous American ensembles including the National Geographic Midwestern Tour (MN and IL), Revival Theater Company (IA), Theater Cedar Rapids, Quincy Symphony (IL), and the Dirt Road Ensemble (NH). Since 2010, he has been involved with the Apple Hill Center for Chamber Music in NH, serving as a Playing for Peace participant, counselor, and camp director.
For more information, please visit http://www.g-zeidieh.com

A violinist and conductor, Dr. Emile is the artistic director of the Cache Symphony Orchestra, the music director/conductor of the Northern Utah Symphony, and the conductor of the New American Philharmonic. A music professor at Utah State University since 1981, he teaches classes in conducting, orchestration, and strings. He maintains between 5 and 10 private violin/viola students a week, and occasionally performs with the Utah Symphony and with other professional orchestras.

Dr. Emile studied conducting with Robert Shaw (Atlanta Symphony), Michael Charry and Louis Lane (Pittsburgh Symphony), Thomas Briccetti (Omaha Symphony), Sir Brian Priestman (Miami Symphony), Robert Emile (Lincoln and San Diego Symphonies), Harold Evans (University of Nebraska Opera), Tibor Kozma (IU, Bloomington, Opera) and Giora Bernstein (Pomona College). He has conducted professional, university and youth orchestras across the country, including in California, Colorado, Nebraska, Missouri, Alabama, Utah, Idaho and Maryland. He has also had the honor of conducting premieres of works by Dominick Argento – “In Praise of Music” (a set of “songs” for orchestra), and “Out To The Wind” an opera by Robert Beadell, which was broadcast live on national public television.

His violin background includes a DMA from the University of Colorado, Boulder, where he studied with Ozzie Lehnert (violinist in the Casals Trio), an MM from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, and a BA from Pomona College, CA. He has performed in professional orchestras, including the San Diego, Omaha, Birmingham, Huntsville, Lincoln, and Utah Symphonies. He has performed on stage with well know artists from all genres; such as Arthur Fiedler, André Kostelanetz, Glen Campbell, Chet Atkins, Peter Schickele (P.D.Q. Bach), Peter Nero, Pink Martini, Daniel Heifitz, Chuck Mangioni, Toni Orlando and Dawn, and many others. He has performed and acted in movies with Glen Close, Meatloaf, Taj Mari (the famous Disney actor), Skitch Ulrich, Gary Oldham and others. He has also recorded movie scores, for television and theaters, such as “The Iron Giant”, “Lydian’s Jest”, the Walt Disney Move “The Scarecrow”, and “Zena, Warrior Princess” episodes.
For more information, please visit: https://cca.usu.edu/music/directory/emile-mark