Roderick Cox rehearses with the San Francisco Opera Orchestra in a tent for the company’s performances of Rossini’s Barber of Seville at a drive-in. Photo courtesy San Francisco Opera
“Roderick Cox became enamored of music as a child,” writes Victoria Looseleaf in Monday’s (4/19) San Francisco Classical Voice. “Taking up the French horn, he eventually attended … Northwestern University and [graduated] with a master’s degree in conducting in 2011. Studying with Mallory Thompson and Victor Yampolsky, Cox, an African American, has since seen his star rise in this very competitive field.” He participated in the League of American Orchestras’ 2016 Bruno Walter National Conductor Preview. “Cox … was slated to make his debut at the Metropolitan Opera and San Francisco Opera—both with Rossini’s The Barber of Seville—as well as appear with the LA Phil at the Hollywood Bowl, Aspen Music Festival Chamber Orchestra, and with the New York Philharmonic (Young Peoples Concerts). These concerts … were canceled because of COVID-19. Then SF Opera’s … general director, Matthew Shilvock, re-envisioned Rossini’s comic masterpiece in a new production that would be presented in a drive-in setting at San Rafael’s Marin Center…. The beloved work runs for 11 performances beginning April 23 – May 15.” Cox speaks about life during the pandemic, the early role of music education in his career, and his experience as a Black conductor in a White-dominated field.
