Gregory Cunningham

Professor of Music
Director of Bands
Instrumental Music Program Coordinator
Instrumental Conducting
Oakland Symphony Orchestra, Wind Symphony

Contact: [email protected]
(248) 370-3015

Dr. Gregory Cunningham is Director of Bands, Professor of Music, and Instrumental Music Program Coordinator at Oakland University, where he conducts the Oakland University Wind Symphony, teaches undergraduate and graduate coursework in instrumental conducting, and serves as Music Director of the Oakland Symphony Orchestra, a regional orchestra in residence at OU. Beginning his 25th year at OU, the range of performance activities of the Oakland University Wind Symphony, the university's premiere auditioned wind band has significantly diversified in terms of regional scope and comprehensiveness of repertoire. Within the last decade, the OU Wind Symphony has toured throughout the state of Michigan, performed twice at the Michigan Music Conference, and was one of eight collegiate bands, invited through blind peer review, to perform at last year's 2018 College Band Directors National Association North Central Conference.

Prior to his appointment at OU in 1997, Gregory was the Doctoral Conducting Intern at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign (1994-1997). During his residency, Cunningham taught courses in conducting, served as a staff conductor within the University of Illinois Band Department, was an Editorial Assistant for the Journal of the Council of Research in Music Education, made appearances as guest conductor with the Champaign-Urbana and Illini Symphony orchestras, and performed as the Principal Conductor of the Springfield-based (IL) Sangamon Valley Youth Symphony and Sangamon Valley Youth Chamber Orchestra. 

From 2010 – 2015, Dr. Cunningham served as Music Director and Principal Conductor of the Warren Symphony Orchestra, a regional professional orchestra located in Southeastern Michigan.

Dr. Cunningham remains very active as a clinician and adjudicator of high school and middle school orchestras/bands and has served as guest conductor for various district and state level honors ensembles throughout the Midwest, Northeast and Southeast. He has presented/co-presented workshops for instrumental music teachers at the Michigan, Illinois and Wisconsin Music Educators conferences, has co-presented at the MENC National Conference, and the Symposium on Music Teacher Education. He has made guest appearances as an Artist in Residence at the University of Illinois–Urbana Champaign, the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire, the University of North Carolina – Wilmington, and has also served on the summer faculties of the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, Illinois Summer Youth Music, University of Iowa Summer Music Camp, and Shell Lake Music Camp.