San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra Celebrates Music Director Daniel Stewart In His Final Concert This May
Stewart conducts his final concert in his role with the Orchestra with a performance of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 5.
By: A.A. Cristi Apr. 22, 2024
On Sunday, May 19, the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra celebrates Wattis Foundation Music Director Daniel Stewart, who conducts his final concert in his role with the Orchestra with a performance of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 5.
Mahler’s Fifth Symphony was written over his summer holidays in 1901 and 1902, during which Mahler met and married his wife Alma Schindler. The Symphony’s fourth movement, Adagietto, is said to be a love note to Alma and is now one of his most well-known works.
“It has been an honor and privilege to help guide this generation of young musicians in their artistic development,” said Stewart. “I couldn’t be more proud of their exceptional results and accomplishments, or more grateful for all the unforgettable musical memories created over the last five years. I’m greatly looking forward to celebrating our time together with this culminating performance of Mahler’s Fifth Symphony in May.”
In April, as part of the lead-up to this special performance, Stewart will lead the SFSYO in a special “side-by-side” rehearsal of Mahler’s Fifth Symphony with members of the San Francisco Symphony, including the Youth Orchestra coaching staff, to give guidance and share their rich history and expertise performing Mahler’s symphonies. While the Youth Orchestra coaches work regularly in sectionals with the young musicians, the “side-by-side” rehearsal allows larger sections of the Youth Orchestra to play alongside the musicians of the San Francisco Symphony as well as ask questions and gain valuable insights.
Daniel Stewart was named Wattis Foundation Music Director of the SFSYO during the 2019-20 season after being appointed by Michael Tilson Thomas, then San Francisco Symphony music director. At the invitation of current Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen, he made his acclaimed San Francisco Symphony debut in November 2021 in a program featuring Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9. Stewart has also led the SF Symphony in Concerts for Kids programs and recorded performances of works by George Walker, Elizabeth Ogonek, Mary Lou Williams, and Ambrose Akinmusire for the San Francisco Symphony’s digital SoundBox series.
During his five seasons as SFSYO Music Director, Stewart has programmed and conducted the Youth Orchestra in wide-ranging works, including performances of Stravinsky’s Le Sacre du printemps, Ravel’s Daphnis and Chloé, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, and Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet, as well as works by 14 contemporary composers including Gabriela Lena Frank, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Caroline Shaw, and Gabriella Smith. He conducted the SFSYO in his own orchestral arrangement of Myungsoo Shin’s BLACK SWAN—an arrangement of the hit song by K-pop group BTS—in a performance which has garnered over a million views online. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Stewart organized and hosted remote curriculum for the SFSYO, including arranging, conducting, and producing a remotely recorded performance of Mason Bates’ Mothership in collaboration with the composer. He invited and hosted several special guests, including SF Symphony Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen, Los Angeles Philharmonic Music and Artistic Director Gustavo Dudamel, and Berlin Philharmonic First Concertmaster Noah Bendix-Balgley, who each worked with and talked to the Youth Orchestra during rehearsals. Stewart has also led the SFSYO in special presentations of the San Francisco Symphony’s Music for Families Concerts and served as music director of the Bay Area Youth Orchestra Festival in 2019 and 2024.
Founded by the San Francisco Symphony in 1981, the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra is one of the San Francisco Symphony’s flagship education programs and is recognized internationally as one of the finest youth orchestras in the world. The SFSYO provides a tuition-free orchestral experience of pre-professional caliber to more than 100 talented young musicians ranging from ages 12 to 21 from communities throughout the greater Bay Area. SFSYO musicians are chosen from more than 300 applicants in annual competitive auditions. Jahja Ling served as the SFSYO’s first Music Director, followed by David Milnes, Leif Bjaland, Alasdair Neale, Edwin Outwater, Benjamin Shwartz, Donato Cabrera, Christian Reif, and Daniel Stewart. The next SFSYO Music Director will be announced in June.
About Daniel Stewart
Daniel Stewart joined the San Francisco Symphony as Wattis Foundation Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra in the 2019–20 season and completes his tenure at the end of the 2023–24 season. He also currently serves as music director of the Santa Cruz Symphony and has conducted the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, Boston Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Houston Symphony, St. Louis Symphony, hr-Sinfonieorchester, Frankfurt Opera Orchestra, and Boston Ballet, among others.
Recent highlights have included his debut with the San Francisco Symphony in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and a 10-year extension of his music directorship of the Santa Cruz Symphony. Under his artistic leadership, the Santa Cruz Symphony has seen unprecedented growth and earned a reputation for innovative programming, frequent collaborations with leading International Artists, and attracting exceptional talent to its ranks.
In 2012 the Metropolitan Opera appointed Mr. Stewart the first conductor of their Lindemann Young Artist Development Program. In 2013 he made his Lincoln Center debut in a Metropolitan Opera-produced concert of scenes by Stravinsky, Mozart, Donizetti, and Berlioz. During his tenure with the Metropolitan Opera, he coached singers and conducted soloists in a range of operatic repertory.
A passionate advocate of contemporary music, Mr. Stewart’s close collaborators have included Esa-Pekka Salonen, Thomas Adès, Mason Bates, HK Gruber, and Karlheinz Stockhausen. His own compositions have received premieres at venues including the Aspen Music Festival, Tribeca New Music Festival, and Verbier Festival.
A San Francisco native and alumnus of the SFSYO, Mr. Stewart is a graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music where he studied conducting with Otto-Werner Mueller. He has also studied with Michael Tilson Thomas, Simon Rattle, Christoph Eschenbach, and Alan Gilbert. In 2010 Mr. Stewart was awarded the Aspen Music Festival’s James Conlon Conducting Prize. He has concertized frequently as a viola soloist and served as principal violist of numerous ensembles including the New World Symphony, Schleswig-Holstein Festival Orchestra, and the Verbier Festival and Chamber orchestras. He has recorded for EMI with Maxim Vengerov and toured extensively in more than 40 countries.
About the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra
Founded by the San Francisco Symphony in 1981, the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra (SFSYO) is recognized internationally as one of the finest youth orchestras in the world. The SFSYO’s purpose is to provide an orchestral experience of pre-professional caliber, tuition-free, to talented young musicians from the greater Bay Area. The more than 100 musicians, ranging in age from 12 to 21, represent communities from throughout the Bay Area. SFSYO musicians are chosen from more than 300 applicants in annual competitive auditions. Jahja Ling served as the SFSYO’s first Music Director, followed by David Milnes, Leif Bjaland, Alasdair Neale, Edwin Outwater, Benjamin Shwartz, Donato Cabrera, Christian Reif, and Daniel Stewart, who currently serves in the role.
As part of the orchestra’s innovative, tuition-free training program, musicians from the San Francisco Symphony coach the young musicians every week before full ensemble rehearsals. Youth Orchestra members also gain invaluable experience working with world-renowned artists, which have included Esa-Pekka Salonen, Michael Tilson Thomas, Herbert Blomstedt, Kurt Masur, John Adams, Yo-Yo Ma, Isaac Stern, Yehudi Menuhin, Wynton Marsalis, Midori, Joshua Bell, Mstislav Rostropovich, Sir Simon Rattle, Gustavo Dudamel, Ray Chen, and many others. Of equal importance, the young musicians are able to speak with these established artists about their professional and personal experiences, and about music. In addition to critically acclaimed appearances at home, the Youth Orchestra has toured Europe and Asia, giving sold out concerts in such legendary halls as Berlin’s Philharmonie, Vienna’s Musikverein, Saint Petersburg’s Mariinsky Theater, Paris’ Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, and Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie. Its alumni have won positions in many major orchestras throughout the US and in Europe.
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