“The Utah Symphony’s Thierry Fischer has picked up a side job: principal guest conductor of the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, South Korea’s flagship orchestra,” writes Catherine Reese Newton in Wednesday’s (9/21) Salt Lake Tribune. “Fischer, music director of the Utah Symphony since 2009, will continue in that position; his contract here runs through 2019. Along with newly named Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra conductor-in-residence Markus Stenz, he has signed to the Korean orchestra for three years, beginning in January. A committee of seven—including SPO CEO Heung-Sik Choe and musicians from inside and outside the orchestra—made the appointments. The SPO’s previous music director … Myung-Whun Chung, resigned amid conflict with the former CEO at the end of December, according to Korean newspapers…. Utah Symphony | Utah Opera CEO Paul Meecham said on Wednesday that Fischer’s work in Korea will be ‘really complementary to what he’s doing here.’ While Fischer will be in Seoul for five or six weeks out of the year, Meecham said, his schedule in Salt Lake City will be his top priority…. The Seoul Philharmonic [was] founded in 1945.… Fischer and Stenz are anticipated to conduct at least 10 of the SPO’s 40 subscription concerts between them each season.”
Posted September 22, 2016
