Dr. Christopher Jed “CJ” Madsen is an adjunct professor at the Brigham Young University (BYU) School of Music. CJ recently received a Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) degree from the University of Arizona, emphasis in choral conducting. CJ received a master’s degree in choral conducting and a bachelor’s degree in piano performance, both from BYU. CJ’s doctoral document was on the choral music of Janice Kapp Perry.
As a composer and arranger of over 1,000 pieces, CJ has had his works performed by dozens of soloists and ensembles, including all five BYU choral ensembles, the University of Arizona Symphonic Choir, and the Aeolian Singers of Oakwood University. CJ’s most recent large work, an opera entitled He Shall Prepare a Way, was staged in April 2022 and released as an album and concert video. In addition, CJ is the composer of One Fold, One Shepherd, a sacred work for choir and orchestra released in 2019 as an album and performed in April 2024 at the Tabernacle at Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah. A new opera, entitled I Will Trust in Thee Forever, will have its stage debut in Provo in the fall of 2026.
CJ grew up in West Jordan, Utah, and was a volunteer missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 2012 to 2014 in North Carolina. Much of CJ’s inspiration as a conductor, composer, and pianist come from his belief in Christ, his passion for people, his thirst for powerful music, and his love for his wife (Samm) and five children (Hollis, Charlotte, Jonathan, Taran, and Georgia).
