Praised for his “skill and verve” (New York Times), Shannon celebrates nearly 30 years as a professional operatic pianist, vocal coach, conductor and administrator. During this time, Maestro Shannon has held leadership positions with Sarah Caldwell’s Opera Company of Boston (Artistic Administrator, Assistant Conductor, Conductor), Virginia Opera (Artistic Administrator, Associate Artistic Director, Conductor), Pensacola Opera (Music Director and Principal Conductor), Shreveport Opera (Music Director and Principal Conductor), Mobile Opera (General and Artistic Director, Principal Conductor) and the Janiec Opera Company of the Brevard Music Center (Resident Conductor and Vocal Coach).
An active vocal coach and pianist, Jerome Shannon has served as a judge for the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions and numerous regional opera voice competitions, an On-Site Evaluator and Reporter for the National Endowment for the Art and is the recipient of OPERA America’s BRAVO Service award for dynamic leadership in the industry. Shannon is a graduate of the College of Creative Arts of West Virginia University where he was a scholarship student of Metropolitan Opera soprano Frances Yeend and her husband, coach/pianist James Benner.