This summer, conductor Anthony Parnther debuts with Chicago and San Diego Symphonies & Cleveland Orchestra; returns to Music Academy; tours with John Legend; & more

(May 2024) — On the heels of symphonic debuts with the San Antonio Philharmonic and
Richmond Symphony this spring, as well as the world premiere performance of National
Geographic’s film concert Secrets of the Whales in Calgary, Alberta, conductor Anthony Parnther
makes debuts with the Chicago Symphony (Aug 17), San Diego Symphony (Aug 15), and
Cleveland Orchestra (Aug 8); returns to the Music Academy of the West to conduct
Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring (June 29); and tours with John Legend this summer. Other
summer highlights include two programs at Chicago’s Grant Park Music Festival (July 19 & 20);
and returns to the Philadelphia Orchestra (June 20) and San Francisco Symphony (July 23 &
24). As the New York Times put it in its recent profile, Parnther is “a conductor for the future”
with “a flourishing career.”

Known as “Hollywood’s go-to conductor for epic projects” (Billboard), Parnther leads the
Chicago Symphony at Ravinia as they celebrate the 15th anniversary of Disney and Pixar’s
blockbuster Up, performing Michael Giacchino’s Academy Award-winning score alongside a
screening of the film. Up has a special resonance for Parnther as he made his studio debut playing
bassoon on the film’s original soundtrack recording. He also returns to the Philadelphia
Orchestra this summer, conducting “Batman in Concert” to celebrate that film’s 35th
anniversary (June 20). At the Grant Park Music Festival in Chicago he conducts “Star Wars and
More: The Music of John Williams” for two performances (July 19 & 20). Finally, with his own
San Bernardino Symphony – where he’s in his fifth season as Music Director – Parnther
conducts a Fourth of July celebration titled “America the Beautiful” that includes music from
scores for The Wiz, The Wizard of Oz, and Wicked (July 6).

Dedicated to amplifying traditionally underrepresented voices, Parnther has long “used his
platforms and rising profile to champion Black composers” (New York Times). He has
consistently been an advocate for the music of Florence Price, and recently made his Atlanta
Symphony Orchestra subscription concert debut conducting her Third Symphony, in addition to
conducting it in recent months with the Richmond Symphony. This summer, he performs the
same piece once again as he returns to the Music Academy of the West, on a program with
Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring and Joan Huang’s Tujia Dance (June 29). After the Atlanta
performance, ArtsATL declared:

“From the very opening measures, Parnther’s interpretation was a revelation. … [He] put the
African American idioms in the foreground, and the music exploded with vitality and groove. …
There was so much flair in his rhythms, and the ASO delivered the music with so much personality
– Price’s personality – that when the movement came to an end, the audience laughed with
happiness and almost broke into applause. … For conductors learning the piece, it should be the
benchmark for how this wonderful music goes.”

Parnther also tours the U.S. this summer with superstar singer-songwriter and pianist John
Legend. Stops include Parnther’s Cleveland Orchestra debut at the orchestra’s summer
Blossom Music Festival residency (Aug 8), San Diego Symphony debut in The Rady Shell at
Jacobs Park (Aug 15), a return to the San Francisco Symphony (July 23 & 24), and
performances at Wolf Trap (June 4–6).

Among his many other projects, Parnther serves as Conductor and Music Director of the
70-member Civic Orchestra of Los Angeles, a youth orchestra launched last month by the
Musicians at Play (MAP) Foundation – of which the conductor is also Artistic Director. The
mission for the new Los Angeles-based orchestra is to continue MAP’s training of youth and
provide career pathways, world-class training and performance opportunities for young
professional musicians in Southern California. Parnther comments:

“With the recent closing of both long-time pre-professional Los Angeles-based orchestras – the
YMF Debut Orchestra and American Youth Symphony (AYS) – we knew we needed to step up and
do something to remedy the issue. We’ll be offering spots to AYS alums and combining their talents
with some of our top students from MAP’s growing RISE Diversity Project.”

Click here to download high-resolution photos.

www.anthonyparnther.com
www.facebook.com/parnther
www.youtube.com/channel/UCzo7Zb6oDxvfO43-zq3Y6pQ
www.instagram.com/anthony_parnther

Anthony Parnther: upcoming engagements

June 2
Los Angeles, CA
Synchromy Opera Festival
Dante DE SILVA: Minute to Midnight

June 4-6
Vienna, VA
With John Legend
Wolf Trap – Filene Center

June 20
Philadelphia, PA
The Mann Center, TD Pavilion
Philadelphia Orchestra
“Batman in Concert”

June 29
Santa Barbara, CA
The Granada Theatre
Music Academy of the West Summer Festival
Joan HUANG: Tujia Dance
PRICE: Symphony No. 3 in C Minor
STRAVINSKY: The Rite of Spring

July 6
San Bernardino, CA
San Bernardino Symphony
“America the Beautiful”
Music from The Wiz, Wizard of Oz, and Wicked

July 19 & 20
Chicago, IL
Grant Park Music Festival
“Star Wars and More: The Music of John Williams”

July 23 & 24
San Francisco, CA
John Legend: A Night of Songs & Stories with the San Francisco Symphony

Aug 1
Baltimore, MD
With John Legend

Aug 7
Saratoga Springs, NY
Saratoga Performing Arts Center
An Evening with John Legend

Aug 8
Cuyahoga Falls, OH
Blossom Music Center
Cleveland Orchestra (debut)
An Evening with John Legend

Aug 15
San Diego, CA
The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park
San Diego Symphony Orchestra (debut)
An Evening with John Legend

Aug 17
Chicago, IL
Ravinia
Chicago Symphony Orchestra (debut)
Up in Concert

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© 21C Media Group, May 2024