Brian Runnels has served as Music Director and Conductor of the Houston Civic Symphony since 2006. He first conducted the Houston Civic Symphony in 1979 when he served as Apprentice Conductor with the orchestra under Robert Linder. Since that time, he has conducted orchestras, musical theatre, oratorio, and opera in Missouri, Kansas, Minnesota, and Kentucky. After earning a degree in music education at Houston Baptist University he went on to earn a masters degree in church music and choral conducting at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in orchestra conducting from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. He has had additional conducting training at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria and in the United States with Max Rudolf and Herbert Blomstedt.
He retired from teaching in 2023, having taught 36 years at many levels including public and private high schools and at the university level. He was Professor of Music at Houston Christian University after serving several years as Dean of the College of Arts and Humanities. He has held teaching positions at Bemidji State University in Minnesota and Murray State University in Kentucky. In addition to conducting the orchestras, he served both institutions as department chair in music. While serving as Interim Director of Orchestras at UMKC he conducted the premiere performances of Duse and D'Annunzio, an opera by faculty composer Gerald Kemner. He has held conducting positions with the Houston Youth Symphony and the Kansas City Civic Symphony. For 10 seasons he was Music Director of the acclaimed Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Houston. He conducted Houston's Opera in the Heights in critically acclaimed performances of The Tales of Hoffmann by Jacques Offenbach.
In addition to his conducting and teaching activities, he has been a presenter at numerous conferences including the National Association of Schools of Music Annual Meeting, the National Convention for Technology Institute in Music Education, Texas Music Educators Association, Kentucky Music Educators Association, Minnesota Music Educators Association, Music Educators National Conference, Southeastern Music Education Symposium, and the Annual Conference for Academic Chairpersons sponsored by Kansas State University. His work has been published in several journals including the Journal of Music Teacher Education, National Issues in Higher Education, and Southeastern Journal of Music Education. He has served as a member of the Board of Directors of several organizations including the Kentucky Music Educators Association, Murray Civic Music Association, Minnesota Society of Music Education, Minnesota Alliance for Arts in Education, and the Kansas City Civic Orchestra. He served as Secretary on the Board of Directors of the Texas Association of Deans of Liberal Arts and Sciences and President of the Kentucky Association of College Music Departments as well as several elected offices in the Minnesota Council of University and College Musicians. For Region 8 of the National Association of Schools of Music he served as Vice-Chair and as Secretary.
Since retirement from teaching he is working with Lisle Violin Shop in Houston.
Michael Isadore is known to both performers and audiences for his music-making that is “energetic, inspiring, and passionate.” His ability to unify ensembles and create compelling artistic performances with musicians of all ages has made him a sought-after conductor, clinician, and performer.
He currently serves as Associate Conductor of the Houston Civic Symphony. Throughout his career, working with young musicians has played an important role. Under his leadership, the Dulles High School Orchestra grew from a small program into a nationally recognized ensemble. The group has performed at The Midwest Clinic, been a repeated finalist in the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) Honor Orchestra competition and has consistently earned “Commended” and “National Winner” honors in the Mark of Excellence competition.
A passionate advocate for new music, Isadore has commissioned and premiered works by composers including Libby Larsen, Kenji Bunch, Kirt Mosier, Michael Markowski, Jamie Sampson, Dana Wilson, and others. During his time with the Houston Youth Symphony, he invited composers such as Pierre Jalbert and Quinn Mason into rehearsals, providing students with direct engagement with living composers. Under his direction, the ensemble performed works not typically associated with youth orchestras, executed at a level well beyond their years.
Isadore has been honored with multiple American Prize Awards in Conducting, Performance, and American Music across all three organizations he has led. He has also received the Manilow Music Award (for music educators), presented by Barry Manilow, and the Spec’s Charitable Foundation Award for Excellence in Music Education, presented by the Houston Symphony.
Beyond conducting, Isadore maintains an active and versatile career as an orchestral and chamber musician, concerto soloist, recitalist, lecturer, and educator. He holds clarinet positions with the Victoria Symphony and the Symphony of Southeast Texas and has performed with the Houston Symphony, Corpus Christi Symphony, San Antonio Chamber Orchestra, Victoria Bach Festival, and the Houston Gilbert and Sullivan Society. As a soloist, he has given recitals and concerto performances across Texas, including a featured appearance with the Sugar Land Winds at the Texas Bandmasters Association convention.
When not performing, Mr. Isadore is active as a clinician, adjudicator, martial arts practitioner, knitter, and badminton player.
Houston Civic Symphony Experience:
President, 2007 - Present ; Vice President, 2006-07; Treasurer, 2004-06; Assistant Treasurer, 2003-04
Musical Background:
I began playing violin at age 11, and viola at age 12. I had a viola scholarship at the University of Oklahoma, and played in the University Orchestra my freshman and sophomore years, leaving the orchestra when it became clear that it was impossible to play in the orchestra and be a varsity swimmer at the same time.
Monica has been a violinist with Houston Civic Symphony since 2016, as a section 1st and Principal 2nd. A native of Chapel Hill, NC, she studied under Dr. Richard Luby, earning scholarships with the National High School Honors Orchestra, Eastern Music Festival, and Brevard Festival Orchestra.
By day, Monica works as an energy trader at a major commodities shop. In her free time, she enjoys playing chamber music with friends, perusing HAR, and spending quality time with family.
Bio coming soon
Andrea Cope studied music at Florida State University. She retired from teaching after10 years as an elementary music teacher and 8 years teaching high school art and theatre. A lifelong musician currently playing percussion with the Houston Civic Symphony, Andrea enjoys hosting family drum circles with her grandchildren, and sometimes, their parents. Andrea is also an essayist. Her work has appeared in journals both in the US and the UK.
Bio coming soon
Bio coming soon
The Houston Civic Symphony is always looking for strong musicians to join. Qualified string players have a good chance to be invited to join, and while competition is greater in the brass and woodwinds, qualified players are placed on a substitutes list, and often invited to play one or more concerts in a season. Even if a position is currently filled, musicians are invited to audition for the substitute list. Guest artists are also invited to audition. We offer a wonderful opportunity for musicians, professional or non-professional to play great symphonic music together. Please look on the Home page, or under the auditions tab for additional information.
Houston Civic Symphony has a diverse membership. Attorneys, bankers, university professors, college students, information systems professionals, engineers, judges, homemakers, medical technicians, music educators and others all come together to make up the Houston Civic Symphony. Various backgrounds and ages who love playing great music together.
We play all types of orchestral music from Baroque to Modern, the standard works to the "lesser known" ones. Click this link to see the cumulative repertoire of the Houston Civic Symphony since the 1980s. We have commissioned new works and given their premiere performances. We've performed concerti with many world class musicians, including several members of the Houston Symphony and Houston Grand Opera orchestra. We work to balance our repertoire with standard works and works that challenge us to grow musically. We enjoy it all.
We rehearse on Monday evenings from 7.30 pm to 10.00 pm. Typically we have 7 rehearsals for each concert, including a dress rehearsal the day before the concert. Rehearsals begin in late August and continue to late April or early May, depending on the concert schedule. We typically play concerts in late September/early October, November, January, March, and late April/early May.
Most rehearsals and concerts are held in the Dunham Theater in the Morris Cultural Arts Center on the campus of Houston Christian University, just south of Southwest Freeway at Fondren.
