Noted for her “directorial command” and “technical expertise,” GRAMMY-nominated conductor Beth Willer is recognized as a bold, 21st-century artist with her finger on the pulse of the vocal ensemble art. Her commitment to expanding and deepening the repertoire for vocal ensembles through creative collaboration and culturally relevant programming can be seen in her work with professional and student ensembles alike. A champion of new music, Willer frequently collaborates with established and emerging composers, including significant projects with Kati Agócs, George Benjamin, Christopher Cerrone, James Kallembach, Shawn Kirchner, David Lang, Jessica Meyer, Kareem Roustom, and Julia Wolfe. In addition to her appointment as Director of Choral Studies at the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, Willer is the founder and Artistic Director of the critically acclaimed Lorelei Ensemble.

As Associate Professor and Director of Choral Studies at the Peabody Conservatory, Willer leads the Conservatory’s vocal ensembles, including NEXT Ensemble, the Peabody Camerata, the Peabody Hopkins Conservatory Choir. Under Willer’s leadership, Peabody vocal ensembles have commissioned and premiered new works by Elijah Daniel Smith, Kareem Roustom, Paola Prestini, Tina Tallon, and Natalie Draper. Recent projects include the U.S. premiere of Tim Brady’s Symphony #11: This One is Broken in Pieces with Lorelei Ensemble, Dallapiccola’s Canti di Prigionia with Icarus Quartet, guest artist residency with composer and vocal artist Pamela Z, and works of Johannes Okeghem and his contemporaries with Scott Metcalfe of the Blue Heron Renaissance Ensemble. In 2020, NEXT Ensemble was invited to record works by Philip Glass for the short film Philip Glass: Three Cities | BALTIMORE in celebration of the composer’s 85th birthday. Prior to joining the Peabody faculty, Willer served as Director of Choral Activities at Bucknell University, and led ensembles at Harvard University and The Boston Conservatory. A passionate music educator, Willer has led numerous young artist ensembles, including choruses at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute, New England Conservatory Preparatory School, the Boston Arts Academy, and The Walnut Hill School. An active clinician and master teacher, Willer enjoys frequent engagements with high school and collegiate ensembles across the country.

As founder and artistic director of Lorelei Ensemble, Willer has led the octet to international acclaim, performing at celebrated venues across the U.S. and globe, including Carnegie Hall, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Tanglewood Music Center, Boston’s Symphony Hall, and De SCHUUR (Haarlem). Committed to fulfilling Lorelei’s mission to elevate and expand the repertoire for women’s voices, she frequently initiates collaborations with composers from the U.S. and abroad, leading the ensemble in more than 70 world, U.S., and regional premieres since its founding.

Lorelei Ensemble maintains a robust national touring schedule, including performances Emmanuel Ax, Paul Appleby, Thomas Adès, and Grammy-nominated ensembles A Far Cry and Cantus, and frequent collaboration with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. From 2022-2025, Lorelei Ensemble presented the world premiere and tour of Julia Wolfe’s Her Story, in performances with the Nashville Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, Chicago Symphony, National Symphony Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, and Cincinatti Symphony. Her Story is the latest in a series of Wolfe’s compositions highlighting monumental and turbulent moments in American history and culture. Recent and upcoming Lorelei appearances and residencies include Peabody Conservatory, Eastman School of Music, Princeton University, Duke University, Yale University, and the Tanglewood Music Center. Current projects include LOOK UP featuring Christopher Cerrone’s Beaufort Scales and visuals by Hannah Wasileski, David Lang’s love fail with choreography by Pilobolus, and BREATHE featuring works by Charlotte Greve, Wendel Patrick, Ken Thomson, and Jason Treuting. WILD, an all-new project getting underway in 2026, features new works by Katherine Balch, Angelica Negrón, Sarah Kirkland Snider, Tina Tallon, and Pamela Z.

On the Cantaloupe, Cold Blue, NAXOS, New Focus, Sono Luminus, and BMOP Sound labels, Willer and Lorelei have recorded the music of living composers Kati Agócs, Peter Gilbert, James Kallembach, David Lang, Jessica Meyer, Scott Ordway, and Julia Wolfe, as well as historical works by William Billings, Guillaume Du Fay, Alfred Schnittke, Tōru Takemitsu, the Turin Codex, and the Codex Calixtinus. Recent releases include GRAMMY-nominated Beaufort Scales with Chris Cerrone (2024, Cold Blue Music), I long and seek after with Jessica Meyer (New Focus Recordings, 2024), and Antigone: The Writings of Sophie Scholl with James Kallembach (New Focus, 2022). Named Critic’s Choice by Opera News, David Lang’s love fail (Cantaloupe 2020) was described as “a work that channels poignancy through harmonic and melodic clarity” (The Road to Sound). WQXR raved about Impermanence (Sono Luminus 2018), “Utterly gorgeous . . . The group’s . . . probing interpretations of works both ancient and modern makes for instantly affecting listening.” Forthcoming are recordings of Julia Wolfe’s Her Story with the Nashville Symphony (NAXOS, 2025), and an EP of Scott Ordway’s North Woods (New Focus, 2025).

As a guest conductor, Willer has been privileged to lead performance featuring premiere ensembles across the country, including A Far Cry, the Bang on a Can All-Stars, Icarus Quartet, New York Baroque Incorporated, Roomful of Teeth, and Seraphic Fire. Symphonic work includes performance and recording of standard repertoire and multiple world and U.S. premieres with the Boston Symphony Orchestra (Andris Nelsons, Thomas Adès), Nashville Symphony Orchestra (Giancarlo Guerrero), Chicago Symphony Orchestra (Marin Alsop), San Francisco Symphony (Guerrero), National Symphony (Marin Alsop), the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra (Stefan Asbury), Boston Modern Orchestra Project (Gil Rose), and Odyssey Opera (Rose).

Willer holds graduate degrees in conducting from Boston University (DMA and MM), and an undergraduate degree in music education and trumpet performance from Luther College (BM). Her teachers include Ann Howard Jones, Weston Noble, Mark Shapiro, David Hoose, and Bruce Hangen.