James Bagwell maintains an active schedule throughout the United States as a conductor of choral, operatic, and orchestral literature. Mr. Bagwell has trained choruses for a number of major American orchestras, including the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, Indianapolis Symphony, the Hudson Valley Philharmonic, and the Asheville (NC) Symphony. He has worked with such noted conductors as James Conlon, Raymond Leppard, Jesús López-Cobos, Erich Kunzel, Leon Fleischer, Leon Botstein, Christof Perick, Imre Pallo, and Robert Shaw.
In 2000 Mr. Bagwell joined the faculty of Bard College, where he is Associate Professor of Music and directs the orchestral and choral program. Since 2001, he has conducted numerous concerts with the Bard Festival Chorale and the Bard Chamber Players. In October 2002, Mr. Bagwell premiered Cinderella's Bad Magic by microtonal composer Kyle Gann in Moscow, as part of the Alternativa Festival. In 2003, Mr. Bagwell was named Director of Choruses for the Bard Music Festival, conducting and preparing choral works during the summer at the Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard, and at Alice Tully Hall. In the 2004-2005 season, he prepared the Concert Chorale of New York for three concerts with the American Symphony Orchestra for performances at Avery Fisher Hall. In August, 2006, he conducted a production of Aaron Copland's opera The Tender Land as part of the Bard SummerScape Festival. In 2008, Mr. Bagwell will launch a new graduate program in choral conducting at the Bard Conservatory of Music.
James Bagwell has been Music Director of the Cincinnati May Festival Youth Chorus since 1997, conducting regularly during the May Festival, Carolfest, and outreach concerts in the Cincinnati area. For two seasons, he worked as Robert Porco's assistant for the May Festival Chorus. This summer was his ninth season preparing the May Festival Summer Chorus for the Riverbend Music Series.
Mr. Bagwell has received critical praise for his work as Music Director of Light Opera Oklahoma. In 2005, he conducted three new productions and a concert version of La Périchole for the summer festival season, including the company's debut at the OK Mozart International Music Festival in Bartlesville, Oklahoma.
James Bagwell is Artistic Director for the New York Repertory Singers and serves as guest conductor for the Berkshire Bach Society. From 1998-2001, he was Artistic Director and Conductor of the Indianapolis Symphonic Choir and the Indianapolis Chamber Singers, a professional ensemble he formed in 1999.