New Faculty Spotlight: Russell Adrian
Russell Adrian, D.M.A., joins Bethel as Director of Choral Activities and Associate Professor of Music
This year, Bethel College welcomes a new face to the music faculty. Russell Adrian, D.M.A., joins as the Director of Choral Activities and Associate Professor of Music at Bethel. He will work many roles here, as he will be conducting the Concert Choir, Chamber Singers, and Chapel Choir, as well as teaching multiple classes.
Before teaching here at Bethel, Adrian held positions at Hesston College and Western Mennonite School. He earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in conducting from the University of Minnesota (Minneapolis) and a Master of Music degree in choral conducting from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Adrian is also returning to his alma mater, as he graduated from Bethel College in 2005 with degrees in music and mathematics.
When asked about this new role at Bethel, Adrian said, “It’s really neat to come back and teach here, where I have a lot of good memories from being a student, and a lot of things that shaped my career started here.”
Adrian comes with set goals in mind for the choir. He hopes to work as a facilitator, “giving the students the opportunity to lead within the choir,” Adrian said.
When asked about his love for music, Adrian spoke of it stemming from the music he sang growing up in church. Later on, when he attended Bethel College as a student, Adrian shifted focus to playing the piano. While playing the piano, Adrian was a part of the choir, but it wasn’t until his senior year, when attending a conducting class he realized his love for conducting music.
“Finding my love for music and the bringing of people together to create music was a very formative moment for me to decide that I wanted to direct choirs for the rest of my life.”
Adrian's passion for music and desire to share his knowledge sets the choir up for a highly anticipated year. With events like Bethel Sings at the Bethel College Mennonite Church and Hymn Festivals that will occur during Fall Fest, students will get to see his hard work put into practice very soon this fall.