Director

Ethan LaPlaca is the Director of Choirs at Mt. Lebanon High School, where he conducts the Concert Choir, Chamber Choir, Men’s Ensemble, and Triple Trio, acts as Vocal Director and Producer for the annual spring musical and teaches AP Music Theory.  Mr. LaPlaca serves as chair of the District's secondary Fine Arts department. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in music education from Duquesne University, where he studied organ with Drs. Ann Labounsky and David Craighead, voice with Patricia Donohue-Burns, and choral conducting with Christine Jordanoff. He earned a Master of Arts degree in music performance at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania, where he studied choral conducting with Dr. Gerrit Scheepers and organ with Dr. Christine Clewell. He holds the Colleague certificate from the American Guild of Organists. Under Mr. LaPlaca’s leadership, the Mt. Lebanon High School choral program has grown to exceed 130 singers in grades 9—12. The choirs have performed on numerous festivals and concerts in western Pennsylvania and their recordings are often featured on Classical WQED-FM’s Performance in Pittsburgh series. The choirs consistently receive high accolades from audiences, adjudicators, and guest conductors.

In addition to his teaching career in Mt. Lebanon, Mr. LaPlaca serves as the Assistant Director of Music for the Shadyside Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh’s historic East End, where he shares responsibilities with the Director of Music in playing for services, accompanying anthems, and directing the 35-voice, semi-professional Shadyside Chancel Choir. He has appeared with numerous soloists and ensembles including the all-professional Pittsburgh Camerata, all-professional The Brass Roots, and internationally renowned Verdi mezzo-soprano, Marianne Cornetti. He has presented organ recitals throughout western Pennsylvania at venues that include Calvary Episcopal Church, Heinz Memorial Chapel at the University of Pittsburgh, and Smith Chapel at the Behrend College Campus of the Pennsylvania State University. He has been featured frequently as an artist on local concert series, including  East Liberty Presbyterian Church's Cathedral Concerts (Pittsburgh), Westminster Presbyterian Church’s Organ Summer (Upper St. Clair, PA), St. Paul Cathedral’s Summer Organ Concert Series (Pittsburgh), The Johnstown Concert Series (Johnstown, PA), the Organ Artists Series of Pittsburgh, and Shadyside Presbyterian Church's Music in a Great Space (Pittsburgh). His performance career has extended to Europe, where he has performed and accompanied on organs in England and France. His organ recordings are often broadcast on Classical WQED-FM’s Pittsburgh Organ Series. He is an active member of NAfME: the National Association for Music Education and the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (PMEA) and was recognized as an up-and-coming “Who's Next” in Pittsburgh Music for his contributions to regional performing arts and music education by The Incline in 2017.