The Oakville Symphony (OS) has appointed Lorenzo Guggenheim as its new Music Director and Conductor. Mr. Guggenheim guest conducted the Symphony in April 2022 at the Oakville Centre for the Performing Arts.
His first musical interlude will be to conduct the symphony's Saturday November 5, 2022 performance of Haydn's Symphony No. 104 and Elgar's Cello Concerto in E Minor with guest cellist Paul Marleyn. However, on Sept. 11, symphony patrons and supporters are invited to attend a special ticketed event at the Oakville Club to meet Lorenzo.
"From the minute Lorenzo stepped onto the stage, he conveyed confidence, warmth and passion for what he does, and a genuine desire to share that passion with the audience," stated Former OS Board President Anna Hewitt.
"I am very excited to be joining the fantastic Oakville Symphony family. During our time together earlier this year, I witnessed the wonderful energy of the members of the orchestra and their dedication to making music at the highest level for a fabulously warm audience," commented Lorenzo upon learning of his appointment.
"It is my immense honour to lead the OS in its new chapter and to help create a space in which the community of Oakville can gather to enjoy the unique sensation of communal listening, breathing, and feeling. I am looking forward to our thrilling 2022/23 season and to the many inspiring initiatives that we will present!”
Lorenzo has experience guest-conducting and assisting performances of symphonic repertoire, opera and new music with orchestras in Canada, the United States, Argentina, Chile, Germany, and Israel.
In Ontario, he founded the University of Toronto Campus Philharmonic Orchestra and conducted Orchestra Toronto, Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra and the Greater Toronto Philharmonic Orchestra.
Lorenzo is about to complete a Doctorate in Orchestral Conducting at the University of Toronto, where he was awarded a full scholarship and teaching assistant position.
Lorenzo Guggenheim holds a Master of Music in Orchestra Conducting from the University of Washington, Seattle, and a bachelor’s from the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina, Buenos Aires, both in Orchestral Conducting.
The Oakville Symphony’s search for a new music director began in early 2020 after Maestro Roberto De Clara informed the Board that he would not be renewing his contract after conducting the OS for 24 successful years.
A search committee was struck, consisting of a balance of professional and community musicians, current and former board members, and the executive director.
The OS received over 50 applications from Canada, the US and abroad, and invited twenty candidates to a first interview. Subsequently, a number of candidates were asked to submit a video presentation and a detailed multi-year concert season plan.
This select group of candidates was interviewed by the second panel of search committee members. Due to the Covid pandemic, all meetings and interviews took place online.
Four highly-qualified applicants then guest-conducted a concert weekend in person during the 2021-22 season, which was extended to accommodate all of the conductors after the February concert was postponed due to public health restrictions.
Musicians and audience members provided valuable feedback about the candidates via surveys after each concert. The search committee made its recommendation to the board of directors in July.
The OS invites patrons and supporters to meet Lorenzo Guggenheim at a ticketed social event at the Oakville Club on Sunday, Sept. 11, from 5 to 7 p.m.
The Oakville Symphony is the town’s long-established full orchestra, performing ten times a year at the Oakville Centre for the Performing Arts. Entering its 55th season, the OS is home to a core group of professional musicians and a dedicated group of community players. The Oakville Symphony is a registered charity.