CHARLOTTE, N.C. — In a historic move, the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra named Kwamé Ryan as its first Black music director on Tuesday.
Ryan, 53, was born in Canada and raised on the Caribbean island of Trinidad. He discovered his love of music at the age of nine. He studied musicology at Cambridge University and trained under lauded composer and conductor Péter Eötvös.
An active guest conductor, Ryan has led orchestras across the United States including the Baltimore, Dallas, Atlanta, and Houston symphonies, while his international credits include London’s Philharmonia Orchestra, the BBC Proms, Brussels’s Theatre La Monnaie, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, and the Opera Bastille in Paris.
In the spring of 2024, he will make his debut with Opera Theatre of St. Louis and the New York Philharmonic.
Additionally, he hosts the podcast "8-Minute Idea," in which he offers meaningful insights, tools and life hacks.
Ryan said he felt "instantly connected" with the musicians of the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra upon his first visit to the Queen City.
“Their dedication to balancing artistic innovation and preservation as a means to engage with their community resonates naturally with my own creative philosophy, and I very much look forward to discovering how this exciting new partnership can enrich the orchestra’s legacy and the cultural fabric of Charlotte," Ryan said in a release.
The selection of Ryan by the Music Director Search Committee, comprised of Charlotte Symphony musicians, staff, and members of the Board of Directors, was unanimous.
"Having witnessed his artistry and extraordinary musicianship in action with the Charlotte Symphony during his recent appearances, I am confident that Kwamé Ryan embodies all of the qualities essential for an exceptional Music Director,” President and CEO David Fisk said in a release.
Ryan will serve as Music Director Designate through the remainder of the 2023–24 season and is set to lead two performances of Wang Jie’s Symphonic Overture “America, the Beautiful,” Brahms’s Symphony No. 1, and Tchaikovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme on April 5–6, 2024.
Ryan will assume the role of the Orchestra’s next Music Director at the start of its 93rd season in 2024, succeeding Christopher Warren-Green after a 12-year tenure.