Dr. Robert Taylor
Founder & Director
Taylor Music Group, Taylor Festival Choir
Dr. Robert Taylor
Founder, Director
Taylor Music Group, Taylor Festival Choir
Dr. Robert Taylor is the Founding Artistic Director and President of the Taylor Festival Choir (TFC) and Taylor Music Group (TMG), Professor Emeritus in Choral Music at the College of Charleston, and the recently retired director of Charleston Symphony Orchestra Chorus and Chamber Singers. Taylor's ensembles have performed throughout the United States and Europe, and have been featured in numerous festivals, conferences and special concerts, including the 2005, 2009 and 2025 American Choral Directors (ACDA) National Conventions; the 2008, 2011 and 2013 National Collegiate Choral Organization Conventions, and multiple appearances in regional and state ACDA and AGO conventions. Taylor's groups appeared annually in the prestigious Spoleto Festival U.S.A. and Piccolo Spoleto Festival from 1998 to 2024.
Dr. Taylor's professional ensemble, the Taylor Festival Choir (TFC), has been hailed by critics and choral specialists alike as being one of the nation’s finest. With the Charleston Symphony Chorus, Taylor has conducted over 40 major or extended choral/orchestral works, and has prepared numerous choral/orchestral masterworks for prestigious conductors such as Dr. Joseph Flummerfelt, David Stahl, Dr. Joe Miller, Ken Lam, Louis Solemno, JoAnn Faletta , Yuriy Bekker and Stuart Molina. Taylor is an avid lover and arranger of Irish, Scottish and English traditional music. Along with his wife, violinist/Irish fiddler Mary Taylor, Taylor founded the Taylor Music Group, a 501c3 arts organization devoted to producing and supporting both classical and folk music– particularly of the Celtic nations. Deeply involved in Piccolo Spoleto and with the Charleston Office of Cultural Affairs for 25 years, Taylor was awarded the Piccolo Spoleto Lifetime Achievement Award. Taylor is a proud native of Little Rock, Arkansas and is a huge Razorback fan. An avid golfer and consumer of literature, he has lived in Charleston for 26 years with his wife Mary, their two dogs Guenevere and Morgaine, and cat Twix. Mary and Rob are the proud parents of their only child, TFC alto and Charleston-based Librarian Kiri Taylor.
““Many will be drawn to this (recording) simply because of the intensity Taylor brings to his readings, and the way his choir responds with such potent empathy for the music.” ”
Where did you do your musical training?
I have a DMA in Choral Conducting, with minors in musicology and voice science from Louisiana State University (primary mentor being Ken Fulton; a MM in Vocal Performance and Pedagogy from Sam Houston State University; and a BME from the University of Central Arkansas.
When did you first start performing with the TFC?
We started TFC in 2001 with the help of my Mom, Janelle Tinnell, and my dad’s best friend Gene Fortson. What a dream come true.
What is your all-time favorite choral work?
The Bach B-minor Mass is not only my favorite, but for my money the greatest single musical composition ever.
Where do you live now? And where do you call “home”?
My wife and I settled in Charleston in 1998 and have never left. We raised our daughter Kiri here. We love Charleston. That said, you can take the boy out of Arkansas, but you can never take Arkansas out of the boy. Arkansas will always be “home.”
What is your favorite hobby outside of music?
Golf. I “used to be” a competitive golfer in another lifetime. Reading–particularly historical fiction, fantasy, and the classics. I love working out. I love sports. I follow politics–probably too much. I am a HUGE dog lover. I have come to love cooking. Above all, I love spending time with the two most important girls in my life, Mary and Kiri. I am happy just watching the Food Channel with Mary for hours on end.
Who is your favorite singer?
Easy. Jussi Björling, the greatest of the them all, and Kiri Te Kanawa, after whom I named my daughter!
Who is your favorite actor?
This is tough. I can’t narrow down to one. Here’s some: Emily Blunt, Jennifer Lawrence, Sophie Marceau, Michelle Jenner, Alia Bhatt; Ian McKellen, Kit Harington, Eddie Redmayne, Cillian Murphy, and Liam Neeson.
Make me name ONE and it’s probably JLaw. She’s a genius.
Favorite movie or play?
Lord of the Rings. All three.
What is your favorite meal?
Vegetable/cheese enchiladas with mole sauce.
Who is your favorite sports team?
There is no bigger fan of the Arkansas Razorbacks on EARTH. Wooooooooooo PiG! Soooooooie!!!
Do you have a favorite TFC or “singing with Rob” anecdote?
Well, I am of course Rob. I can’t imagine what its like to sing with me. I will say I am a child at heart, and every time I am with the TFC, I feel like my deceased Mom and Dad are present, giving me and their granddaughter Kiri a huge hug. Time spent with the TFC making music or just hanging is like spending time with a personalized version of my parent’s legacy. It's hard to explain. But very rewarding. Plus–I just love the singers in the TFC. Love being with them. Period.