Ben R. King

Professor of Voice; Director & Associate Dean

E-mail: ben.king@houghton.edu
Phone: 585.567.9400

Professor of Voice Ben R. King, a lyric baritone, joined the Houghton faculty in 1980 as Assistant Professor of Voice.  Over the years he began the Opera Workshop, earned his doctorate in Performance and Music Literature from the Eastman School of Music, and served for six years as Chair of Houghton's Division of Fine Arts and Director of its School of Music.  In 1992, Professor King departed Houghton for a position at a university in his native Texas, only to accept a Houghton invitation to return four years later, in 1996:

“For a variety of reasons I came to the conclusion that, unless higher learning was conducted in the context of a higher good, it was essentially meaningless.  Unless I could practice my profession in the context of Christian goals and values, I no longer wanted to practice it.  In God's good Providence, He saw fit to arrange matters so that I returned to Houghton.” 

In addition to providing Houghton students with a solid grounding in musical ideas and practices, Professor King hopes that, more importantly, he is a part of their faith journey, of helping them become who God has in mind for them to be.  As Professor Emerita of History Katherine Lindley once said, "The most important question for Houghton students is not 'Do you know history?' or 'Do you know music?' but 'Do you know the Lord?' "

For in-depth professional information, visit Dr. King's home page.

Courses: Music & Christian Perspective, Vocal Literature, Vocal Pedagogy, GA Forum