 The role of artistic director was previously held by German organist and conductor Helmuth Rilling.The festival's programming is three-fold.It presents a diverse slate of concerts and guest artists, which in recent years has included non-Bach-related programs by Garrison Keillor, Bobby McFerrin, Frederica von Stade and Yo-Yo Ma; it maintains a focus on choral-orchestral repertoire, including commissions and premieres; and it undertakes extensive educational activities, most famously a conducting master class that draws participants from around the world as well as a Youth Choral Academy, the Stangland Family Youth Choral Academy, directed by conductor Anton Armstrong of St. Olaf College and a Composers Symposium directed by composer Robert Kyr.