Stephen Alltop has built a career based on excellence in several disciplines, conducting both orchestral and choral ensembles, and performing as a keyboard artist. The 2025-2026 season marks his twenty-ninth year as Music Director of the Apollo Chorus of Chicago. Dr. Alltop is the ninth music director in the 154-year history of the chorus. Under his direction, the Apollo Chorus has expanded its collaborations to include appearances with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Opera Theater, London Symphony Orchestra, Ravinia Festival, Peninsula Music Festival, Lollapalooza and The Oprah Winfrey Show.
A specialist in oratorio and historical performance practice, Dr. Alltop is a member of the conducting and keyboard faculties at the Bienen School of Music at Northwestern University where he has conducted the Alice Millar Chapel Choir and the Baroque Music Ensemble. Stephen Alltop also serves as Music Director and Conductor of the Elmhurst Symphony Orchestra and the Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra. An advocate for diversity in programming, he has sought to bring attention to under-represented composers in both the orchestral and choral realm.
Dr. Alltop has guest conducted numerous orchestras and choruses across the United States, Italy, and South Korea. He has worked closely with leading composers of the day, including residency projects with John Corigliano, Eleanor Daley, Stacy Garrop, Stephen Paulus and Eric Whitacre. In 2007, he made his Carnegie Hall debut conducting the music of Eric Whitacre.
As a harpsichord and organ soloist, he has performed with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Joffrey Ballet, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Omaha Symphony, Peninsula Music Festival, and Music of the Baroque of Chicago.
Please note: Biographies are based on information provided to the CSOA by the artists or their representatives. More current information may be available on websites of the artists or their management.
