Dr. Jeffrey Seppala

Jeffrey Seppala, bass-baritone, is an Assistant Professor of Voice and the Director of Opera and Musical Theatre at Boise State University. Prior to Boise State, Dr. Seppala was a faculty member at Truman State University and the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, where he taught voice and directed the opera theatre productions.

As a performer, Dr. Seppala has extensive experience in concert and operatic repertoire, having performed with companies such as Opera Idaho, Central City Opera, Opera Colorado, Tri-Cities Opera, Delaware Valley Opera, A.J. Fletcher Opera, CU New Opera Workshop, the Piccolo Festival in Friuli, Italy, Larimer Chorale, Voices West, and MahlerFest. He is a versatile performer with operatic credits including the title roles in Falstsaff and Don Giovanni, Don Magnifico in La Cenerentola, Il Conte in Le Nozze di Figaro, Baron Zeta in the Merry Widow, Slook in La Cambiale di Matrimonio, and premiers as Mr. Webb in Our Town, and Mr. Darcy and Mr. Wickham in Pride and Prejudice. Significant solo concert appearances include Haydn’s Creation, Bach’s Magnificat, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Brahms’ Ein Deutches Requiem, Handel’s Messiah, Mozart’s Coronation Mass, and Duruflé’s Requiem.

As a voice teacher, Dr. Seppala integrates old world techniques with modern pedagogical instruction to assist singers in classical and CCM styles. In addition, as a certified yoga instructor, he advocates for mind and body wellness through the use of yoga, body mapping, and Alexander Technique. He is an active member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) where his students have regularly placed at the regional and national competitions. As an opera director, his recent directing credits include main stage productions of Hansel and Gretel, Street Scene, Speed Dating Tonight, Amahl and the Night Visitors, and Cosi fan tutte.

Dr. Seppala holds a Doctorate of Music in Voice Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Colorado at Boulder, a Masters of Music in Voice Performance from the A.J. Fletcher Opera Institute at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and a Bachelors of Music in Voice Performance from Biola University.

Outside of music, Dr. Seppala enjoys running, yoga, and exploring the world on adventures with his wife and three daughters.