“A 24-year-old wunderkind composer-musician will be the new chief conductor of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra,” states an unsigned article in Thursday’s (10/27) Edmonton Journal (Alberta, Canada). “Alexander Prior, who guest-conducted the ESO just last June, will replace outgoing conductor Bill Eddins starting in the 2017-18 season. Eddins will step down as conductor and music director at the end of the current ESO season, although he will remain as music director emeritus to help with the Winspear [Centre] Completion Project, which involves the construction of a $53-million addition.” The London-born Prior “has been a prodigy since his early teens. At the age of 13, his ballet Mowgli, commissioned by the Moscow State Ballet, received international acclaim.” Prior “graduated with distinction in conducting at 17 from the St. Petersburg Conservatory [and] has worked with orchestras from Cologne to Boston to St. Petersburg. As a composer, he has already written several symphonies, concertos, choral works and operas.” Says ESO/Winspear Centre Executive Director Annemarie Petrov, “He’s a remarkable musician, he’s gregarious and exceptionally well-spoken, and a lot of fun. And he already has this marvelous connection with the musicians.”
Posted October 28, 2016
