Rate My Professor Justin Knoepfel

Dr. Justin Knoepfel serves as Associate Professor of Music and Chair of the Department of Music at Gustavus Adolphus College, positions he has held since 2019 after joining the faculty in 2009 as an adjunct viola instructor and advancing through visiting instructor, visiting assistant professor, and assistant professor roles. He earned a B.A. in Music with emphases in violin and music management from Luther College in 2004, a Master of Music in viola performance from the University of Minnesota, and a Doctor of Musical Arts in viola performance with a secondary emphasis in music theory from the University of Minnesota in 2010. His doctoral thesis, “Bach's Viola Concerto: A Transposition, Transcription, and Reconstruction of BWV 169, 49, & 1053,” was supervised by Korey Konkol. Prior to his academic career, Knoepfel worked as a tax associate at Deloitte & Touche from 2005 to 2006 and as a sales associate at Claire Givens Violins from 2006 to 2010. He teaches a range of courses including viola, violin, instrumental conducting, and the Gustavus Symphony Orchestra.

As permanent conductor of the Gustavus Symphony Orchestra since 2023, following over ten years leading the Philharmonic Orchestra and a year as interim conductor, Knoepfel oversees a robust performance schedule featuring events like Christmas in Christ Chapel and the Nobel Conference, annual tours, and international trips every four years, most recently to Ireland and Scotland. A professional violist, he has performed with the Minnesota Orchestra, Minnesota Opera, Mankato Symphony, South Dakota Symphony, and La Crosse Symphony Orchestras, collaborated with members of the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, and shared stages with artists including The Eagles, Idina Menzel, and Amy Grant. He has performed privately for King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden. Knoepfel is a recipient of the Dr. Carlo A. Sperati Award from Luther College in 2024, the Andrew W. Mellon Fellowship in Digital Humanities in 2017 and 2018, the Paul Magnuson Award for Service in 2013, and various travel and lecture grants. He serves as a clinician, guest conductor, and adjudicator, including as guest festival conductor for the Dorian Orchestra Festival, and contributes to programs like the Lutheran Summer Music Academy and MNSOTA Summer String Camp.