Daniel B. Stevens is the Conductor of the Starkville Symphony Orchestra, appointed to the position in 2023. He proudly serves with the faculty of Mississippi State University as the Department Head and Professor of Music.

Prior to MSU, Daniel enjoyed a lengthy tenure at two higher education institutions: first, at Southwestern College (Winfield, KS) for eight years as the Mazie Barnet Kilmer Chair for String Education and conductor of the South Kansas Symphony; and most recently as Professor of Music, Music Director and Conductor of the Shoals Symphony Orchestra, Director of the Peery Center for Orchestral Studies, and applied viola studio teacher at the University of North Alabama.

As a professional musician, Daniel had a 15-year career as violist with the Tulsa Symphony Orchestra and has recently performed with the Alabama Symphony Orchestra and Huntsville Symphony Orchestra. He has held esteemed positions in the Aspen Music Festival Orchestra, the Wintergreen Music Festival Orchestra, and the Colorado Springs Music Festival Orchestra. As a soloist, Daniel was an MTNA Regional Runner-Up, and has been a feature chamber musician in the Ameropa International Chamber Music Festival in Prague, Czech Republic. In March 2010, Daniel performed in a Carnegie Hall debut through Distinguished Concerts International, New York. Daniel's acclaim led to an instrument sponsorship from K.C. Strings Violin Shop. His professional violin and viola are premiere custom instruments made by Anton Krutz and family.

When asked about most memorable performances, Daniel has fond memories of appearing on a PBS special, Music for Life, with Bob McGrath of Sesame Street fame, playing with musicians from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the NY Metropolitan Opera at the Aspen Music Festival, performing in an orchestra to accompany Luciano Pavarotti's farewell tour in a 10,000-seat arena.

Peter Infanger is the full-time Director of Music Ministries at Starkville's First United Methodist Church and is an adjunct teacher in the department of music at Mississippi State University. He holds a bachelor's degree in vocal music performance from West Virginia Wesleyan College and a master's degree in choral conducting from the College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati. While in Starkville, Infanger has been the director of the Men of State and has worked intermittently with the Symphony Chorus. Active in the community music scene, he has been an organizer of a series entitled Bluegrass and Baroque and the community Christmas celebration, "A STAR(k)filled Christmas" which is sponsored by several of the downtown churches. It is in this spirit that he comes to the Starkville/MSU Symphony Association's chorus to continue it's traditions of musical excellence and community service.

Ryan Ross teaches music appreciation and history courses at Mississippi State University. Prior to his appointment at MSU, he served for three academic years as an adjunct instructor of music at Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree in piano performance from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, as well as M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in musicology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign respectively.

Professor Ross's scholarly interests center around northern European and American music of the 19th and 20th centuries, as well as scores for films and other media. His writings have appeared or are forthcoming in several periodicals, including the Journal of the American Music Research Center, Twentieth-Century Music, Notes, Carl Nielsen Studies, and The Musical Times. He is currently completing Ralph Vaughan Williams: A Research and Information Guide, to be published by Routledge.