Jamie Poulsen

James Poulsen very much enjoys working with young musicians in the classroom and in individual lessons. He also very much enjoys performing with students in classical and jazz settings.

Poulsen taught part-time for Simpson from 1992-2003. He has now been full-time at Simpson since 2003 (21 years). Poulsen teaches Music Theory, Aural Skills, Applied Piano, Jazz Piano, and Discovering Music. He has accompanied over 200 student recitals.

Although trained as a Classical pianist, he stays very busy as a jazz pianist, performing over 100 times a year in the Des Moines metro area and throughout Iowa in duos, trios, quartets, and bigger jazz bands, especially the Nola Jazz Band, based out of Des Moines. He has appeared at the Bix Lives Festival 4 times, the Cedar Basin Festival, the Glenn Miller Festival, and many others.

Before teaching college full-time, Poulsen was staff composer for SR Audio productions and composed and produced the music for hundreds of commercials and business films in Iowa and all over the U.S. for companies like Pioneer, Farm Bureau, Hy-Vee, Principal, and the Walt Disney Corporation.

James Poulsen has also had 3 major orchestral works commissioned and premiered by the Des Moines Symphony and played by other orchestras across the U.S. He is currently arranging the recording of these works in London for the summer of 2025.

B.A. in Music (Piano Performance) Buena Vista University, 1984
M.M. (Piano Performance) University of South Dakota, 1985
3 years Doctoral Studies in Music, University of Iowa, 1985-1988

Alleluia, Gloria, for Mixed Chorus
Praise God! for Mixed Chorus
Entreat Me Not to Leave You, for solo voice and piano
Self-Published:
16 Art Songs
3 Orchestral Works
2 Choral Works

21 Addys for music in advertising
11 Tellys for music in advertising
4 times Best Score at the Iowa Film Awards
1st Prize, PMMO Composition Contest, 1984, out of 186 entries
ASCAPlus award for emerging composers, 2009
ASCAPlus award for emerging composers, 2008