Robert Istad
California State University, Fullerton

Robert Istad is a GRAMMY® Award-winning conductor who “fashions fluent and sumptuous readings” (Voice of OC) with his “phenomenal” artistry (Los Angeles Times). Appointed Pacific Chorale’s Artistic Director in 2017, Istad has continued to expand the chorus’s reputation for excellence through fresh interpretations of masterworks, newly commissioned works, and innovative artistic collaborations.

His newest project, the choral-theatrical concert film To the Hands, premiered as an official selection of the 2025 Newport Beach Film Festival and is scheduled for commercial release in early 2026. In 2023, he led Pacific Chorale’s first international tour in seven years, conducting performances throughout Austria, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

Istad’s artistic work can be heard on several recent recordings featuring Pacific Chorale, including the 2022 GRAMMY® Award-winning recording of Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and conductor Gustavo Dudamel on Deutsche Grammophon. He also prepared Pacific Chorale for Pacific Symphony’s recording of Sir James MacMillan’s Fiat Lux and conducted the ensemble’s recording of All Things Common: The Music of Tarik O’Regan.

In addition to collaborations with Pacific Symphony and Berkshire Choral International, Istad has conducted ensembles including Long Beach Symphony Orchestra, Bach Collegium San Diego, Musica Angelica Baroque Orchestra, Bath Philharmonia, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, and Freies Landesorchester Bayern. He has also prepared choruses for many internationally renowned conductors, including Esa-Pekka Salonen, John Williams, Marin Alsop, and Sir Andrew Davis.

An esteemed educator, Istad serves as Professor of Music and Director of Choral Studies at California State University, Fullerton, where he was named CSUF’s Outstanding Professor of the Year in 2016. He conducts the University Singers, leads a graduate conducting program, and remains highly sought after as a guest conductor, lecturer, and clinician.