Bill McLaughlin was a classical music radio host, a music educator, a musicologist, a composer and a conductor. He was a Peabody Award–winning classical music radio host. In 1980, he launched the popular St. Paul Sunday Morning on NPR. Later he hosted Exploring Music, heard on the WFMT network. He was known for his ingratiating personality. Bill was also a professional orchestra musician, over…
At age 16, violinist Ariana Kim made her debut with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra and at age 24, she was appointed acting concertmaster of the Louisiana Philharmonic. Ariana made her New York recital debut at Carnegie’s Weill Hall during her doctoral studies at Juilliard and she is now a tenured professor at Cornell University. Equally devoted to contemporary and long-established literature,…
Courtney Lewis is currently celebrating 11 years with the Jacksonville Symphony, having established himself as one of his generation’s most dynamic conductors. Deeply committed to new music, Courtney has worked with many of today's leading composers. In Jacksonville, recent and upcoming commissions include works by Carlos Simon, Tarik O'Regan, Lowell Liebermann, Courtney Bryan and Conrad Tao. In…
Stephanie Childress is principal guest conductor of the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra, and she is a rising star on both sides of the Atlantic, equally at home in opera and in concerts. Born in London to a non-musical family, as a teenager she would often skip classes and spend her afternoons watching stage and orchestra rehearsals at the English National Opera, eventually dropping out of school to…
James Robinson is a stage director and arts administrator who has worked at opera houses throughout the world. His double-calling is unique. He currently is Seattle Opera’s fifth general and artistic director. As I record this, we regret the recent passing of SpeightJenkins, a predecessor of James Robinson at Seattle Opera between 1983 and 2014. James Robinson had been the artistic director at…
Daniel Okrent is the author of seven books, most recently, “Stephen Sondheim Art Isn’t Easy,” of which The Guardian said: “The entire book is sheer delight and Okrent, formerly an editor at The New York Times and a baseball fanatic who effectively invented the modern fantasy baseball league, does a terrific job of telling Sondheim’s life story alongside shrewd analysis of his body of work.” Other…
Steven C. Smith is an Emmy-nominated documentary producer, author, and speaker who specializes in Hollywood history and profiles of contemporary filmmakers. A four-time Emmy nominee and 16-time Telly Award winner, Steven has produced and written over 200 documentaries. They include The Sound of a City: Julie Andrews Returns to Salzburg; The Lure of the Desert: Martin Scorsese on Lawrence of…
For over 45 years, Sir Donald Runnicles has built his reputation with several of the most significant opera companies and orchestras, and he is especially celebrated for his interpretations of Romantic and post-Romantic symphonic and opera repertoire which are core to his musical identity. He has held chief artistic leadership positions at the Deutsche Oper Berlin (since 2009), Grand Teton Music…
Max Volbers is one of the most versatile young musicians in the field of early music. He’s a recorder player, a harpsichordist and now a conductor. He’s a representative of the sound worlds of the 17th and 18th centuries, when musicians mastered several instruments without question. He also devotes himself to new music and regularly works with composers on commissioned compositions. Max has…
American conductor James Gaffigan is recognized worldwide for his extraordinary collaborative spirit, and he has attracted international attention for his work as a conductor of symphony orchestras and opera. James was recently named the next music director of Houston Grand Opera, and he will assume his new role in the 2027/28 season. James is in demand at opera companies and symphony orchestras…