Charles Dickerson (Chuck) is Founder, Executive Director and Conductor of the Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles (ICYOLA), Professor of Orchestra Studies at California State University, Dominguez Hills, Director of Music at Rolling Hills United Methodist Church (RHUMC), and Director of The Choir at Leo Baeck Temple. He is also the primary conductor of the newly formed New Hope Orchestra of Orange County. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the League of American Orchestras. He formerly served as Music Director and Conductor of The Southeast Symphony, and as Director of Music at Holman United Methodist Church.
ICYOLA is a pre-professional orchestra that is primarily comprised of middle-, high school, and college students from the African American and Latino communities of Greater Los Angeles. It offers its members the opportunity to learn the great music of the world, and to perform that music on the great stages of the world. It also serves as the orchestra of California State University, Dominguez Hills.
Chuck’s responsibilities at RHUMC include oversight of the entire music program at the church, including direction of the 40-voice Chancel Choir. At Leo Baeck, he directs the choruses that are assembled for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and other special events at the Temple. He has prepared choruses for the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Hollywood Bowl Orchestras, including performances of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and Mahler’s Eighth Symphony. He has conducted orchestras and choruses in Africa, Asia and Europe.
Chuck is also a noted composer. His best-known composition is “I Have a Dream”, a choral and orchestral setting of the landmark 1963 speech of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The piece was performed as part of the official unveiling ceremonies for the National Memorial to Dr. King on the National Mall in Washington DC in 2011. Chuck’s choral/orchestral arrangement of “We Shall Overcome” is also widely known and performed, and his orchestral setting of “Lift Every Voice and Sing” is now the standard orchestral version of this piece. Among his most recent compositions is a setting of Amanda Gorman’s 2021 Inauguration Poem, “The Hill We Climb.”
Chuck holds a Masters Degree in Conducting from California State University, Los Angeles. He also holds degrees from Howard University (B.S.) and American University (J.D.). He formerly served as City Attorney of the City of Inglewood, California, and as President of the Board of Public Works of the City of Los Angeles. He is married and has two adult children. He is an avid baseball fan.