Accomplished Swedish Ballet Director To Head Desert Symphony As Conductor
The Desert Symphony, on Tuesday, made the announcement that Gary Berkson would take the role of conductor for the Desert Symphony.
“I am excited to work with The Desert Symphony and the wonderful guest artists that will be performing in the 2010-2011 season. I look forward to providing fantastic music to our desert audience,” Gary Berkson, Music Director and Conductor, The Desert Symphony.
According to his credentials released by the Desert Symphony, Berkson is a graduate of the Juilliard School of Music in New York, and recently selected as one of the alumni to be featured in “Dance, Drama, Music: 100 Years of the Juilliard School” published in celebration of its centenary.
He is best known for his work as a conductor in the theatre, appearing with companies like the Dutch National Ballet, the Nederlands Dans Theater I & II, Hamburg Ballet, Norwegian National Ballet, Royal Swedish Ballet, Finnish National Ballet and in the operatic field with the Greater Miami Opera, Chattanooga Opera, Royal Swedish Opera, Malm Opera och Musikteater and at international music festivals in the United States, Germany, Bulgaria and Norway conducting operas and ballets ranging from the traditional to the contemporary.
Maestro Berkson has conducted the world premires of works by Per Nrgaard, Hans Gefors, Arne Mellns, Thomas Jennefelt, Lars Johan Werle, Diego Dall’Osto, Ian McQueen, as well as the Bulgarian premire of Debussy’s Pellas et Mlisande and the Swedish premires of Leonard Bernstein’s Candide (Opera House Version) and Peter Maxwell Davies’ Taverner. Gary Berkson is no stranger to symphony orchestras.
“In the year since Maestro Benachowski’s passing, Tom Hartley has given us unwavering dedication as conductor and friend of the symphony. On behalf of The Desert Symphony I would like to personally thank Mr. Hartley for all that he’s done to support us for nearly ten years,” said Nancy Tapick, President, The Desert Symphony.
