André J. Thomas

André J. Thomas is an Associate Artist with the London Symphony Orchestra and Professor Emeritus of Music at Florida State University. From 2020 to 2022 he served as Visiting Professor of Choral Conducting at Yale University, following earlier appointments at the University of Texas, Austin. He holds degrees from Friends University, Northwestern University, and the University of Illinois.
Dr. Thomas is in constant demand as a conductor, adjudicator, and clinician, leading Honor and All-State Choirs across North America, Europe, Asia, New Zealand, Australia, and Africa. He has appeared at state, divisional, and national conventions of both NAfME and the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA). His international work includes residencies with the World Youth Choir in China, the Philippines, and Europe, and a historic performance in Vietnam with the Florida State University Singers, the first by an American choir in that country.
As a guest conductor, Thomas has led many of the world’s most distinguished ensembles, including the Birmingham Symphony Orchestra in England, the Berlin Radio Choir, the North German Radio Choir, the Netherlands Radio Choir, the Bulgarian Radio Choir and Orchestra, the Seoul Metropolitan Chorus, the Ansan City Choir and Jeju Provincial Seogwipo Chorale in South Korea, the Charlotte Symphony, China’s People’s Liberation Orchestra, the Czech National Symphony Orchestra, and the London Symphony Orchestra. For 31 seasons, he was Artistic Director of the Tallahassee Community Chorus.
In addition to his conducting career, Thomas has distinguished himself as a composer and arranger, with works published by Hinshaw, Mark Foster, Fitzsimons, Lawson Gould, Earthsongs, Choristers Guild, and Heritage Music. He has produced two instructional videos—What They See Is What You Get, with Rodney Eichenberger, and Body, Mind, Spirit, Voice, with Anton Armstrong—and his book Way Over in Beulah Lan’: Understanding and Performing the Negro Spiritual has become a seminal resource for conductors and scholars alike.
His artistry and leadership have been recognized by numerous organizations. He was named a “Living Legend” by the African Diaspora Sacred Music, received Chorus America’s Distinguished Service Award in 2011, the Robert Shaw Award from ACDA in 2017, and that same year was honored with the National Collegiate Choral Organization’s Lifetime Achievement Award. He has also been inducted into the Florida Music Educators Hall of Fame, received the Award of Excellence from the Southern Region of ACDA, the Samuel Simons Sanford Medal from Yale University—the school’s highest honor—and, most recently, Florida State University’s Torch Award in 2025.
Dr. Thomas has served as President of the Florida ACDA, the Southern Division of ACDA, and as National President of ACDA, leaving an enduring mark on the profession through his artistry, scholarship, and leadership.