Michigan Tech’s College of Sciences and Arts congratulates Joel Neves as he takes on his new position as chair of the Department of Visual and Performing Arts, effective July 1. Neves has served as a professor of music and director of orchestral activities in the department, specializing in teaching the history of rock music.
“Joel is a superb conductor,” said LaReesa Wolfenbarger, dean of the College of Sciences and Arts. “What better preparation could there be for being chair of a multidisciplinary department? He brings a strong collaborative approach to leadership and values the talents and accomplishments of the department as well as its aspirations.”
Neves was teaching middle and high school orchestra in Utah 17 years ago when he heard about a job opening for conductor of the Keweenaw Symphony Orchestra (KSO) at Tech. The position was open due to the retirement of long-time KSO conductor Milt Olsson.
“I’d never heard of Houghton or the Keweenaw or the U.P. before, but I thought I’d take a chance,” said Neves. “It was the best choice of my career.”
Under his leadership, KSO was awarded second place in the 2021 American Prize in Orchestral Performance for its recordings of “Jupiter” and “Sinfonia antartica.” The orchestra premiered Joel’s first composition, the tone poem “Kalaupapa” about his great-grandparents’ imprisonment in Molokai’s leper colony, in 2025. Neves is currently artistic director and conductor of the Pine Mountain Music Festival, a professional opera and classical music festival in Michigan. He is also a regular guest conductor of multiple professional, college, and all-state orchestras.
Equally adept at theater, Joel has directed numerous opera, ballet, and musical theater productions. He conducted How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying at Southern Utah University, Bizet’s Carmen with the Pine Mountain Music Festival, and Amahl and the Night Visitors, Swan Lake, South Pacific, West Side Story, and Sweeney Todd with Michigan Tech Theatre. He has also conducted multiple productions of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker with the Minnesota Ballet (2015, 2018, 2021) and Talmi Entertainment (2025).
Neves studied conducting with Larry Rachleff, Gustav Meier, Kory Katseanes, Timothy Russell, and William Reber. He received a doctor of musical arts in orchestral, choral, and opera conducting from Arizona State University and bachelor of arts in trumpet and master of music in orchestral conducting from Brigham Young University. A strong advocate for college conductors, Joel served as national president of the College Orchestra Directors Association (CODA), the only professional service organization for conductors of university orchestra programs in North America.
He steps into his new leadership role excited to help showcase a department he calls a “shining diamond” at Michigan Tech.
“The students and faculty here at Tech are just the best,” said Neves. “There is a hunger for excellence, an insatiable curiosity, a humility in learning, and a joy in collaboration that is second to none in my field.”
About the College of Sciences and Arts
The College of Sciences and Arts is a global center of academic excellence in the sciences, humanities, and arts for a technological world. Our teacher-scholar model is a foundation for experiential learning, innovative research and scholarship, and civic leadership. The College offers 33 bachelor’s degrees in biological sciences, chemistry, humanities, kinesiology and Integrative physiology, mathematical sciences, physics, psychology and human factors, social sciences, and visual and performing arts. We are home to Michigan Tech’s pre-health professions and ROTC programs. The College offers 25 graduate degrees and certificates. We conduct approximately $12 million in externally funded research in health and wellness, sustainability and resiliency, and the human-technology frontier.
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