Gregory A. McPherson, DM

Dr. Gregory Allen McPherson is the new Choir Director at Delaware State University. Dr. McPherson has distinguished himself as a major figure in entertainment, being one of the most sought-after composers, arrangers, performers, conductors & producers involved in modern music. Some of the artists and ensembles benefiting from his talents and expertise include jazz greats Lionel Hampton, Sarah Vaughn, Clark Terry, James Moody, Max Roach, Wynton Marsalis, George Benson, Warren Hill, Betty Carter, George Russell, Ron McCurdy, and Nancy Wilson. In television, R&B, popular music, film, & musical theatre have included his work with New Kids on The Block, Bobby Womack, Smokey Robinson, Kashif, James Brown, The Pointer Sisters, Jayne Kennedy, Bill Overton, Lalah Hathaway, Tiffany, Larry Leon Hamlin, Patti Austin, Tatyanna Ali, Martin Lawrence, Boyz II Men, Tamia, James Ingram, Bon Jovi, Peabo Bryson, Cindy Lauper, Vanessa Williams, Howard Hewett, and Peter Wolf. He’s also worked as lead and associate producer on several production teams for recordings that have won several Grammys, Oscars, NAACP Image Awards, American Music Awards, Emmys, ASCAP & BMI Awards, Billboard Music Awards, Grammy Legends Awards, and Soul Train Music Awards. Dr. McPherson has produced records for CBS, RCA, Quincy Jones’ QWEST Records, BMG, MCA, Elektra, Capitol, Arista, SONY, Atlantic, Polygram, Warner Brothers, Motown, EPIC, Disney, and several other labels, and as a ghost writer, orchestrator, arranger and composer for soundtracks for New Line Cinema, PBS, SPLC, ABC-Disney, Sony Pictures, and Columbia-TriStar. His label, Silent Images, was also distributed by QWEST/Warner Brothers Records for his multiple jazz, pop, r&b, and longform pieces. In advertising, he’s had some of the biggest ads and clients around the world including Coca- Cola, Pepsi, Mattel. McDonald’s, General Electric, Toyota, Lincoln Properties, L. A. Gear, Fox T.V., Reebok, The New England Patriots, ComputerVision, Pizza Hut, The NBA, Hasbro and many others. Many of his classical works have been performed by several orchestras and select chamber groups from & including the Florida Symphony, The Carolina Philharmonic, The Dallas Symphony, The Atlanta Symphony, The Charleston Symphony Orchestra, The Boston Ballet, The Louisville Orchestra, The Alabama Symphony, The Philadelphia Orchestra, The Baltimore Philharmonic Orchestra, The Boston Pops Orchestra, The New York Philharmonic Orchestra, and many others.

As an educator, Dr. McPherson has served at the University of South Florida, Texas College, Washington State University, Alabama State University, The University of Massachusetts, and a lecturer at Boston College, Harvard University, Kobe University and The New England Conservatory of Music. He has also held senior leadership & faculty post at the Berklee College of Music, Allen University - Morris Brown College, and Stillman College respectively. He has a BFA from Alabama State University and an MM from the University of South Florida, with additional studies at The University of the Virgin Islands, Universite d’Etat d’Haiti, as well as the New England Conservatory of Music with noted black composer & author, George Russell. He is also the recipient of several Honorary Doctoral Degrees, and the Doctor of Music Degree (honoris causa). He has also recently completed a new book on the roles and responsibilities of African-Americans in today’s music industry entitled “A Black Face In Today’s Music Business”, which takes a clear open analytic view on many problems in entertainment, thus, offering suggestions for possible solutions.