
Christian Hales
Studied at San Francisco Conservatory of Music
Works at Leland
Successful clients at


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About Christian
I was a music kid growing up—Tanglewood Insititute during the summer, concerto competition winner with the Utah Symphony, All-state orchestra, etc. I studied double bass in undergrad, but also did tech internships and took business classes on the side. I went on to receive a Master's Degree and Professional Studies Diploma at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music on scholarship. During this time I worked with professors from Juilliard, Curtis, Colburn, Indiana, Rice, NEC, etc, and attended The Aspen Music Festival (as a Leadership Fellow) and the National Orchestral Institute. During grad school I subbed regularly with the SF Symphony and SF Ballet, took 20 professional orchestra auditions, and won a job as Principal Bassist of the Charleston Symphony where I played for three seasons and worked with artists like Itzhak Perlman, Pinkas Zuckerman, Agustin Hadelich, Gil Shaham, and more. Recently, I took a sabbatical to explore my interests in tech and work on the growth team at Leland. Expert in anything related to music school prep, professional auditions, and transitioning from music to literally anything else.
Why do I coach?
As a musician, coaching is in my DNA. Ever since I was 9 years old, I've been engaging in weekly "coaching" (lessons) with some of the best musicians in the world. I also was a professor of bass at the College of Charleston and created a weekly workshop where bassists from Curtis, Juilliard, Rice and Major US symphonies gave advice on winning professional auditions. I've had the pleasure of working with the world's best musicians and love paying it forward.
Work Experience

Growth - Customer Lifecycle
Leland
November 2025 - Present

Adjunct Professor of Bass
College of Charleston
August 2023 - April 2025

Principal Bassist
Charleston Symphony Orchestra
November 2022 - May 2025
Admissions Committee
Leader of Bass section. Write program notes (~60 short essays on music) for our Masterworks Series and piloted program in development team that saw increased donor retention and gift sizes increase by 10% in my portfolio. Sit on Board Finance and Artistic Committees. Responsible for screening and hiring ~20 bassists each year for our guest musician list and member of the Audition Committee for hiring full-time members. Historic tour to Carnegie hall in February 2025.

Bassist
San Francisco Sympony
October 2021 - Present
Conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen, Christoph Eschenbach and Klaus Mäkelä

Bassist
San Francisco Ballet
January 2020 - April 2022
Substitute section player in ballet orchestra

Graphic Designer
Creatably
September 2018 - March 2019
Lead graphics designer for videos, print materials and display ads on client projects spanning a variety of industries.

Summer Operations Analyst
Lucid Software
June 2017 - August 2017
Education

San Francisco Conservatory of Music
Master of Music, String Bass, Music
2019 - 2022
Master of Music and Post-Graduate Performance Studies Certificate

Brigham Young University
Cum Laude with University Honors - Bachelor of Music (BM), Bass Performance
2012 - 2019
Activities and societies: Honors Program, President's Leadership Council Mentorship Program, BYU School of Music Student Advisory Council, Philharmonic Orchestra, 4 years academic scholarship 3 years as Principal Stand in BYU Philharmonic
3 Reviews
Overall Rating
5.0
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