Conductor, Beverly Neighborhood Choir Program, Prelude (Lincoln Park) and School Programs
Choral conductor, music educator, composer, and baritone Jimmy Deignan is from Cedar Rapids, Iowa and currently serves as the conductor of the Beverly Neighborhood Choir and In-School Programs for Uniting Voices Chicago.
Prior to moving to Chicago, Jimmy and his wife Christine taught for two years at Boston International School in Wuxi, China where Jimmy helped develop the International Baccalaureate (IB) Middle Years Music Program at the school, emphasizing community through weekly "open mics" and bolstering musicianship through guitar and digital music production. While in China, Jimmy and Christine co-wrote Motley & Spark, their first in a planned series of musicals written specifically for middle school students. Motley & Spark will have its Midwest premier in spring of 2026. Jimmy spent seven years starting in 2016 teaching high school choir in Iowa and Minnesota, where he explored his desire to bring communities of kids together through a love for music excellence and one another.
Jimmy is an active composer and arranger of choral music and musical theater, with choral pieces published by Santa Barbara Music Publishing, Hal Leonard, and Walton Music. He holds a BA in music education from Luther College in Decorah, Iowa and an MA in music education from St. Thomas University in St. Paul, Minnesota.