In Tuesday’s (10/27) Wall Street Journal, Barbara Jepson writes, “On Wednesday night, 30-year-old Latvian Andris Nelsons, music director of England’s City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, makes his debut at the Metropolitan Opera leading Puccini’s Turandot. … But Mr. Nelsons is only one among a new wave of first-rate, mostly 30-something conductors to garner notable appointments and guest engagements in recent years. … ‘There have always been extremely promising young conductors around,’ says David Foster, president of Opus 3 Artists, a leading talent agency. ‘What’s happened is that artist managers have started taking them on younger.’ Another possible factor, suggests Deborah Borda, president of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, is that musicians are getting the chance to conduct and develop sooner. That’s certainly a recurring theme in the lives of many of today’s brightest young stars, including 28-year-old Gustavo Dudamel, now in his inaugural season as the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s music director. … Whatever the reasons for their ascendance, exceptional young conductors are in demand. Next month, 37-year-old Vladimir Jurowski returns to the Philadelphia Orchestra. … In December, the soulful 34-year-old French-Canadian Yannick Nézet-Séguin makes his Metropolitan Opera debut, and his second appearance with the Philadelphia Orchestra.”
Photo courtesy of the Latvian National Opera
Posted October 27, 2009
