Yale University

We are pleased to announce that Yale University has selected José García-León to serve as the next dean of the School of Music, effective September 1, 2023. 

García-León is currently dean of academic affairs and assessment at The Juilliard School in New York. At Juilliard, he established and expanded a wide range of institutional initiatives, including the development of new degree programs, certificates, and curricula. He also introduced innovative instructional technologies; participated in the development and management of Tianjin Juilliard, a new branch campus in China; and enhanced opportunities for musical and academic exchange with partner schools. Before joining Juilliard in 2014, García-León was associate dean of the University of New Haven’s College of Arts and Sciences. He began his teaching and academic leadership career at Oakland Community College, in Michigan, where he established and subsequently expanded the institution’s music program.

García-León is a noted scholar on the roots of and multiculturalism in flamenco music, the similarities and differences between Argentinian tango and the tango flamenco, and the composition of jazz and classical music. He is also a pianist of international renown. Among García-León’s many honors and awards is first prize in the Artist International Competition of New York.

García-León graduated with highest honors from the Conservatorio Superior de Música de Sevilla before earning his B.A. in music from the State University of New York at Binghamton and his D.M.A. in piano performance from the Manhattan School of Music.

You can read the full press release here. 

Sheryl Ash and Ben Tobin led this search with Hannah Moore and Alaine Small.