New Jersey-native Maura Tuffy has established herself as a dynamic leader in the classical music field.
Described as producing “monumental” work (New Classic LA), Maura recently conducted a performance of Joby Talbot’s Path of Miracles, which is set for more performances on the West Coast in 2024. A conductor and vocalist, Maura has a deep passion for and extensive experience performing early music, oratorio, and new music.
During her graduate studies, she served as the Principal Assistant Conductor for the Yale Camerata, in which she prepared the chorus for works such as Julia Wolfe’s Letter from Abigail (Marguerite Brooks, guest conductor) and André Thomas’ Mass: A Celebration of Joy and Love. Maura sparked particular interest in performing new music while acting as both a guest conductor and vocalist for New Music New Haven from 2020-22 and recently served as the Conducting Fellow for the Black House New Music Workshop in Los Angeles. She has participated in masterclasses with conductors such as Masaaki Suzuki (Bach Collegium Japan), Marcus Creed (Danish National Vocal Ensemble), Simon Carrington (Norfolk Chamber Music Festival), and Beat Shäfer and Markus Utz (Zürich University of the Arts). In 2019, Maura was one of eight conductors selected to participate in the American Choral Directors Association’s Undergraduate Conducting Masterclass, where she worked with Pearl Shangkuan. Her teachers include Jeffrey Douma, André Thomas, David Hill, Marguerite Brooks, Jo-Michael Scheibe, Tram Sparks, Cristian Grases, and Matthew Erpelding.
An avid ensemble singer, Maura has appeared with GRAMMY-award-winning groups Los Angeles Master Chorale and Conspirare, as well as Ensemble Altera, Bach Collegium San Diego, Yale Choral Artists, Cincinnati Vocal Arts Ensemble, and Audivi. She has sung as a soloist with Bach Vespers NYC, Yale Schola Cantorum, Yale Camerata, and USC Thornton Chamber Singers, and with prominent conductors such as Masaaki Suzuki, Gabriel Crouch, André Thomas, and David Hill. In 2019, she was the soprano soloist for Frank Ticheli’s Angels in the Architecture with the USC Thornton Wind Ensemble at Walt Disney Concert Hall. Maura regularly sings with the acclaimed Choir of St. James’ in-the-City in Los Angeles. Her teachers include Sherezade Panthaki, Thomas Michael Allen, Lynn Helding, Gary Glaze, Kathy Price, and Adam Phillips.
Maura’s artistic mission is to catalyze interdisciplinary thinking in classical spaces and to encourage a more accessible and thought-provoking concert experience for broader audiences. Her work with DesMuse has challenged the ways chamber music is presented, and her work with choreographers/dancers from Ballet Hispánico and Ballet of Difference Am Schauspiel Köln has opened a new window for intersecting choral music and dance. Maura continues to forge new possibilities for this type of creative work by working with composers. Most recently, she conducted J.E. Hernández’s Desert Shelter at POST Houston with NobleMotion Dance.
Maura holds two Master’s degrees in Choral Conducting from the Yale School of Music and Bachelor’s degrees in Vocal Arts and Choral Music from the USC Thornton School of Music. She is the recipient of several honors including the Robert Shaw Prize from the Yale School of Music, the Yale School of Music Alumni Association Prize, and the Vocal Arts Department Award from the USC Thornton School of Music. Maura currently serves as the Assistant Choral Director of the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts and taught choral conducting at California State University, Los Angeles during the spring 2023 semester.