About Jake
Jake Taniguchi is a conductor and educator from Honolulu, Hawaiʻi. Currently, he serves as Assistant Conductor to the Indiana University Ballet and Opera Theater, and Principal Conductor to the Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM) New Music Ensemble. Taniguchi regularly serves as assistant conductor to numerous orchestras including the Grant Park Music Festival Orchestra and Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra.
He has served as Resident Conductor and member of the conducting faculty at CIM, Principal Conductor of the Hawaiʻi Chamber Music Festival, and assistant and cover conductor for the Northwestern University Symphony and Chamber Orchestras, Baroque Music Ensemble, and Opera Theater.
Taniguchi's guest conducting appearances include the Northwestern University Medical School Orchestra, Indiana University Symphonic and Concert Bands, Honolulu Wind Ensemble, and Hawaiʻi Youth Percussion Ensemble. He has collaborated with renowned conductors Leonard Slatkin, Dane Lam, and Anthony Parnther, as well as soloists including violinists Jaime Laredo, Jessica Lee and Stefan Jackiw, pianists Sean Kennard, Michelle Cann, and David Kaplan, clarinetist Yoonah Kim, and saxophonist Steven Banks. A fervent advocate for new music, he has fostered artistic partnerships with composers Marcos Balter, Sebastian Currier, Billy Childs, Keith Fitch, Christopher Cerrone, and Joan Tower, among others.
Devoted to nurturing a lifelong enthusiasm for music, Taniguchi has worked with numerous schools, youth organizations, and educational programs, including the Masaki School of Music, Kamehameha Schools, Mid-Pacific Institute School of the Arts, Oshkosh Youth Symphony Orchestra, and HCMF's Young Artist Program.
Taniguchi received his training from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, the Northwestern University Bienen School of Music, and the Cleveland Institute of Music. His conducting mentors include Arthur Fagen, Jeffery Meyer, Thomas Wilkins, Victor Yampolsky, and JoAnn Falletta. Currently, Taniguchi is pursuing a Doctor of Music in orchestral conducting at IU.
August 2025