Margaret (Maggie) Burk (b. 1990) is a conductor, composer, and vocalist committed to the transformative power of choral music.

A native of Lawrence, Kansas, Maggie is currently Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wis., where she oversees the choral area, teaches coursework in music education, choral literature, and conducting, and directs the award-winning Carthage Choir. In demand as a clinician both in the US and abroad, she has led All-State and District honor choirs as well as church music festivals in Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Virginia, Delaware, Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C. In 2023, she was the featured conducting clinician for the Royal Canadian College of Music’s Organist Launchpad video series in Montréal, Quebec. She regularly adjudicates competitions and festivals, with recent engagements including the Michigan School Vocal Music Association’s State Large Group Festival and the Worlds of Fun Festival of Music in Missouri.

Since arriving at Carthage in 2022, Burk has led three of the college’s five choral ensembles, served as Artistic Director of the Carthage Christmas Festival, and coordinated the annual Lakeside Choral Festival — an event which draws 1,500 area high school students to campus for choral clinics and workshops. As the conductor of the Carthage Choir, Burk has led tours to Washington, D.C., Minneapolis-St. Paul, the United Kingdom, and Indianapolis, IN. In 2026, the Carthage Choir was invited to perform at the American Choral Directors’ Association’s Midwest Conference in Milwaukee as the chorus for the Conducting Masterclasses.

Burk completed the Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Michigan where she studied with Eugene Rogers. While at Michigan, she conducted the Arts Chorale and the University Choir; in addition, she served as Assistant Conductor for the Men’s and Women’s Glee Clubs (becoming the first female to conduct the Men’s Glee Club since the Club’s founding in 1859). While at Michigan, she also taught a music workshop at Saginaw Correctional Facility as part of the Prison Creative Arts Project.

Burk completed the Master of Music degree from the Yale School of Music/Institute of Sacred Music, where she studied with Marguerite Brooks, Jeffrey Douma, and David Hill. She was awarded the Robert Shaw Prize for outstanding achievement in choral conducting as well as the Institute’s Faculty Prize for scholarship, performance, and community leadership. Additionally, she was a featured soloist with the Yale Schola Cantorum and Yale Camerata.

Prior to her graduate studies, Maggie taught choral music at Free State High School in Lawrence, KS, and Sartell Middle School in Sartell, MN. She holds the Bachelor of Music degree summa cum laude from St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN.

In addition to her conducting work, Maggie is an active composer and professional chorister. Her music is published by Oxford University Press, Hal Leonard, Morningstar Music Publishing, Catchword Music Press, and Selah Music Publishing; her compositions have been heard at on the BBC Radio 3 as well as at venues such as the National Cathedral in Washington, DC, St. Mark’s Church in Philadelphia, PA, and St. Michael and All Angels in Dallas, TX. Her setting of “Set Me As a Seal” (Hal Leonard) was performed by the National High School Honor Choir at the 2023 American Choral Directors’ Association National Conference in Cincinnati, OH (Eugene Rogers, conductor). She regularly sings with professional choruses around the country, including Audivi (Detroit: Noah Horn, conductor), the Yale Choral Artists (New Haven: Jeffrey Douma, conductor), Musica Atlantica (Savannah, GA: George Fergus, conductor), and the Tallgrass Chamber Choir (Kansas City: Jacob Narverud, conductor).

When she’s not working, Maggie is an avid foodie/home cook, runner, hiker, and explorer — particularly with her twin sister and fellow musician Katie, brother-in-law Dan, and nephew Adam. She is the proud mom of two rescue cats, Leo and Wilma.