About

Jacob Edward Caines is a conductor, musicologist, and performer based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Jacob is an occasional faculty member at Dalhousie University, where he is the director of the Dalhousie Wind Ensemble and professor of music history at the Fountain School for Performing Arts. He is a founding member of the Canada Council for the Arts funded Alkali Collective which supports living Canadian Queer+ and BIPOC composers and musicians through performance and commission. He is the founder and author of ClassicalQueer,  a project dedicated to accountability, visibility, and support for Queer+ performers, writers, musicians, administrators, and artists in Canada.

Jacob is presently conducting his doctoral research (INDI PhD) at Concordia University where he is a member of PULSE Montreal. His research blends studies in Canadian urbanism and geographies, Queer+ artists, and the contemporary state of classical music. As a trained musician and conductor, Jacob continues to engage in the arts through nation-wide adjudication, conducting, and mentorship programs including the Canadian Music Competition. Recently, Jacob toured as music director for the award-winning national tour of Hedwig and the Angry Inch.