Week 1: John Morris Russell
The 2019-20 season will mark John Morris Russell’s ninth as Conductor of the Cincinnati Pops, one of Cincinnati’s most treasured assets and one of the world’s most respected pops orchestras. Consistently winning international praise for his extraordinary music-making and visionary leadership, he is also Music Director of the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra, in South Carolina, where he leads the classical subscription series as well as the prestigious Hilton Head International Piano Competition. Russell also serves as Principal Pops Conductor of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, in New York, following in the footsteps of Marvin Hamlisch and Doc Severinsen. John Morris Russell completed his eleven-year tenure as Music Director of the Windsor Symphony Orchestra in Ontario, Canada in 2012, whereupon he was named that orchestra’s first Conductor Laureate.
NOI+F 2020 Repertoire: An orchestral journey through the last 80 years of film music, from Bernhard Herman and Erich Korngold to Michael Abels and John Williams.
Week 2: David Alan Miller
Grammy Award-winning conductor David Alan Miller has established a reputation as one of the leading American conductors of his generation. Music Director of the Albany Symphony since 1992, Miller has proven himself a creative and compelling orchestra builder. Through exploration of unusual repertoire, educational programming, community outreach and recording initiatives, he has reaffirmed the Albany Symphony’s reputation as the nation’s leading champion of American symphonic music and one of its most innovative orchestras. He and the orchestra appeared twice at Spring For Music, the festival of America’s most creative orchestras at New York City’s Carnegie Hall, and in 2018 at the Kennedy Center’s Shift Festival. In May 2019, Miller's ongoing commitment to education led to his appointment as Artistic Advisor to The Little Orchestra Society, NY, for the 2019-20 season.
NOI+F 2020 Repertoire: John Corigliano: Clarinet Concerto featuring Ben Lulich, clarinet and Gabriela Lena Frank: Work TBD
Week 3: JoAnn Falletta
Hailed as a “leading force for the music of our time” for her work as a conductor, communicator, recording artist, audience builder, champion of American composers and distinguished musical citizen, JoAnn Falletta serves as Music Director of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Principal Guest Conductor of the Brevard Music Center and Artistic Adviser of the Hawaii Symphony Orchestra. She has been acclaimed by The Washington Post as having “Toscanini’s tight control over ensemble, Walter’s affectionate balancing of inner voices, Stokowski’s gutsy showmanship and a controlled frenzy worthy of Bernstein.”
NOI+F 2020 Repertoire: Elinor Warren: Crystal Lake, Samuel Barber: Music for a Scene from Shelley and Harold Shapero: Symphony for Classical Orchestra
Week 4: Mei-Ann Chen
Praised for her dynamic, passionate conducting style, Taiwanese-American conductor Mei-Ann Chen is acclaimed for infusing orchestras with energy, enthusiasm and high-level music-making, galvanizing audiences and communities alike. Music Director of the MacArthur Award-winning Chicago Sinfonietta since 2011, Chen has been named Principal Guest Conductor of Austria’s Recreation Grosses Orchester Graz and the first-ever Artistic Partner of Houston’s River Oaks Chamber Orchestra (ROCO), both effective September 2019. She also has served as Artistic Director and Conductor for the National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra Summer Festival since 2016. Highly regarded as a compelling communicator and an innovative leader both on and off the podium, and a sought-after guest conductor, she continues to expand her relationships with orchestras worldwide.
NOI+F 2020 Repertoire: Lera Auerbach: Icarus, Maurice Ravel: Daphnis and Chloe, Suite No. 2 and Sergei Prokofiev: Symphony No. 5
Week 5: Miguel Harth-Bedoya
Celebrating more than 30 years of professional conducting, Miguel Harth-Bedoya is a master of color, drawing idiomatic interpretations from a wide range of repertoire in concerts across the globe. He has amassed considerable experience at the helm of orchestras with 2019-20 his seventh season as Chief Conductor of the Norwegian Radio Orchestra and his 20th and final season as Music Director of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. Previously he has held Music Director positions with the Auckland Philharmonia and Eugene Symphony.
NOI+F 2020 Repertoire: Antonin Dvořák: Othello Overture, Jimmy López: Perú Negro and Richard Strauss: Ein Heldenleben