James Conlon To Be Honored at the Colburn School Gala

Conductor James Conlon will be honored at the Colburn School’s annual gala, Celebrate Colburn, on April 7, 2024. Conlon will receive the Richard D. Colburn Award for his exemplary contributions to the world of classical music and the arts, including his work as Artistic Director of the Ziering-Conlon Initiative for Recovered Voices at Colburn. The gala also honors arts philanthropist Merle Mullin. As part of the celebration, Conlon will lead an all-Mozart program featuring the Colburn Conservatory’s flagship ensemble, the Colburn Orchestra, and soloists from the Conservatory. 

James Conlon is one of today’s most versatile and respected conductors. Through worldwide touring, an extensive discography and videography, numerous writings, television appearances and guest speaking engagements, Conlon is one of classical music’s most recognized figures. He has conducted virtually every major symphony orchestra in the United States and Europe.

Conlon is Music Director of LA Opera (since 2006). He has been Principal Conductor of the Paris Opera; General Music Director of the City of Cologne, Germany, where he was Music Director of both the Gürzenich Orchestra Cologne and the Cologne Opera; Music Director of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, and Principal Conductor of the Orchestra Nazionale Della RAI in Torino, Italy. He has served as Artistic Advisor to the Baltimore Symphony, Music Director of the Ravinia Festival (the summer home of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra), and is now Music Director Laureate of the Cincinnati May Festival. As a guest conductor at the Metropolitan Opera, he has led more than 270 performances since his 1976 debut. He has also conducted at leading opera houses and festivals such as the Wiener Staatsoper, Salzburg Festival, La Scala, Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, Mariinsky Theatre, Covent Garden, Chicago Lyric Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Teatro Comunale di Bologna, and Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino.

One of Conlon’s most important ongoing missions is the resurrection of works by composers whose lives and careers were suppressed by the Nazi regime. The Ziering-Conlon Initiative for Recovered Voices at the Colburn School, of which Conlon serves as Artistic Director, provides world-class performances of these neglected works, as well educational opportunities that encourage young musicians to learn about these composers. Conlon spoke about the systematic repression of Jewish musicians under the Third Reich in an April 2020 TED Talk. In 2023, he was honored with Austria’s Cross of Honor for Science and Art (Ehrenkreuz), in part due to his tireless work advocating for Austrian composers suppressed by the Nazi regime.

Conlon holds four honorary doctorates, including from the Colburn School, as well as The Juilliard School, Brandeis University, and Chapman University. His recordings of LA Opera productions have won four GRAMMY awards.

Conlon and Mullin will receive their awards as part of an early afternoon celebration centered around the music of Mozart, including performances of the Concerto for Piano and Orchestra in E-flat Major, K. 449 with Conservatory soloist Ryota Yamazaki; Sinfonia Concertante with Conservatory soloists Fiona Shea, violin, and Charlotte Stickel, viola; and Symphony in D Major, K. 385 (“Haffner”), led by Maestro Conlon. Also featured is Pride and Purity, a work created by Dance Academy student choreographer Natalia Reszka to music by Mozart, and performances Hot Pink Brass Quintet, Fiddles on Fire, and Choirs at Colburn. 

Proceeds from Celebrate Colburn will benefit Colburn School’s artistic and youth education programs that bring arts education to 8,500 students annually.