Jarvus Ricardo Hester
Jarvus Ricardo Hester is the Founder and Artistic Director of Harlem Collective Opera, a New York-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to expanding access to opera, classical music, and arts education through innovative performances and community engagement. A visionary arts leader, producer, marketer, and classically trained tenor, Hester is committed to making opera a living, accessible art form for everyone—not just the privileged few.
Prior to founding Harlem Collective Opera, Hester served as Editor-in-Chief of Live Free Magazine, an arts and culture publication dedicated to celebrating and promoting African American artists, creatives, and cultural achievements. He also served as Marketing Director for the General Council of the Assemblies of God in Springfield, Missouri, where he helped lead national marketing initiatives supporting a network of more than one million affiliated churches worldwide.
Hester is an alumnus of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, one of the nation’s premier conservatories.
As a vocalist, Hester has recorded with acclaimed gospel artists including the late Christopher Brinson and The Ensemble, Martha Munizzi, and Clint Brown. Throughout his career, he has produced television programming featuring celebrated performers such as Grammy Award-nominated recording artist David Hollister, Joshua’s Troop, Beverly Spivey, Lemmie Battles, and Bishop Paul S. Morton. He has also collaborated with the producers of MasterChef to help highlight the stories and culinary achievements of African American chefs.
A classically trained opera singer, Hester has appeared with the Piedmont Opera as Sam in The Pirates of Penzance, with Opera Carolina as Paris in Roméo et Juliette, and most recently performed a principal tenor role in Harlem Opera Theater’s production of Mark Fax’s A Christmas Miracle.
As Founder and Artistic Director of Harlem Collective Opera, Hester has established the organization as an emerging force in New York City’s cultural landscape through innovative productions, educational initiatives, and community partnerships. Under his leadership, Harlem Collective Opera launched The Black Composer Project, an immersive concert experience celebrating the rich legacy of Black classical composers while creating new pathways for audiences to experience opera in intimate, accessible settings.
Driven by the belief that great art belongs to everyone, Hester continues to champion diversity, education, and innovation in the performing arts, building programs that inspire new audiences while honoring the rich traditions of classical music and opera.
Dr. Leslie B. Dunner serves as Principal Conductor and Music Advisor of Harlem Collective Opera and is one of today’s most accomplished conductors, recognized internationally for his artistry in opera, ballet, and symphonic repertoire. He is currently conductor of the Interlochen Arts Academy Orchestra, interim artistic director of the South Shore Opera Company, where he has served as music director since 2014, and resident conductor of New Jersey’s Trilogy: An Opera Company since 2018. His stirring performances with Long Beach Opera of Anthony Davis’ The Central Park Five contributed to the work receiving the 2020 Pulitzer Prize in Music.
Dr. Dunner previously served as music director of the Joffrey Ballet and led the symphony orchestras of Annapolis, Dearborn, and Nova Scotia. He spent eleven seasons with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, serving successively as assistant, associate, and resident conductor while concurrently leading the Detroit Symphony Civic Orchestra, the orchestra’s acclaimed youth ensemble. His distinguished conducting appointments have also included principal conducting positions with the Dance Theatre of Harlem, Harlem Festival Orchestra, and Louisville Ballet, as well as a season as interim music director of the Orquesta Filarmónica de Jalisco in Guadalajara, Mexico.
An internationally sought-after guest conductor, Dr. Dunner has served as cover conductor for both the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic, assisting the latter during a four-week European tour. His guest appearances include engagements with the Atlanta, Baltimore, Dallas, San Francisco, and Seattle Symphonies; the Cleveland, Minnesota, and Philadelphia Orchestras; and leading orchestras throughout Canada, Mexico, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Ukraine, Russia, and South Africa. A highly respected ballet conductor, he has appeared with American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, Michigan Opera Theatre, The Royal Ballet at Covent Garden, Birmingham Royal Ballet, and the South African Ballet Theatre, among many others.
Beyond the concert stage, Dr. Dunner has devoted his career to music education and mentorship. He began as an assistant professor at Carleton College in Minnesota and has remained deeply committed to developing young musicians through his work with youth orchestras and educational institutions. His distinguished honors include becoming the first American prize winner of the Arturo Toscanini International Conducting Competition, the Leonard Bernstein American Conductors Award, and the NAACP’s James Weldon Johnson Award and Distinguished Achievement Award.
As Principal Conductor and Music Advisor of Harlem Collective Opera, Dr. Dunner provides artistic leadership for the company’s productions, educational initiatives, and long-term musical vision. His appointment reflects Harlem Collective Opera’s commitment to artistic excellence, the celebration of historically underrepresented voices in classical music, and the continued advancement of opera as a vibrant and inclusive art form.
When not on the podium, Dr. Dunner continues to perform
