Dr. Gary Gerber

Biography

Dr. Gary Gerber serves as Dean of the Townsend School of Music at Mercer University. A native of Azle, Texas, Dr. Gerber holds a bachelor of music degree from Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas. He received two degrees from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, a Master of Music degree in choral conducting in 1990 and a Doctor of Musical Arts in choral conducting in 1993.

Dr. Gerber previously served as Dean of the School of Fine Arts, Chair of the Division of Music, Director of Choral Activities and professor of music at Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. At Ouachita he directed Ouachita Singers, Concert Choir and taught various conducting and choral methods classes. Ouachita Singers under Dr. Gerber’s direction was selected to sing at the 2011 Arkansas All-State conference and at the Southwestern Division of the American Choral Directors Association convention in March 2014. He has taken this choir on numerous tours throughout the United States and overseas.

Dr. Gerber served the Southwestern Division of the American Choral Directors Association as Repertoire and Standards Chairs for Colleges and Universities from 2006-2010, and as the coordinator of the Collegiate Honor Choir for the division from 2006-2018.

Before Ouachita, Dr. Gerber served as Director of Choral Studies at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, Missouri from 1996-2004. He also served as music director and conductor of the Missouri Baptist All-State Youth Choir and the Missouri Music Men, a male chorus of ministers of music from Missouri Baptist churches. Dr. Gerber was founder and director of the Bolivar Community Chorus, a chorus that sang four to five times a season and regularly joined the choral forces at Southwest Baptist University to present large-scale choral works.

In addition to his academic teaching, Dr. Gerber has served as Minister of Music in several Southern Baptist churches. Dr. Gerber is active as a clinician both in the public school and church music fields.

Dr. Gerber is married to Linda Gerber and they have two sons, Nathan and Nicholas.