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National Council on the Arts Members

Gerard Schwarz (Seattle, WA)

Gerard Schwarz has been music director of the Seattle Symphony since 1984. For the last four seasons, he has held a simultaneous position as music director of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. Under his direction, the Seattle Symphony has released more than 85 compact discs, and its numerous recordings of contemporary American composers have received 10 Grammy nominations. Mr. Schwarz was also central to the creation of Benaroya Hall, the symphony’s concert hall that opened in 1998. From 1982-2001, Schwarz was music director of New York’s Mostly Mozart Festival, where he led the orchestra in debuts at the Tanglewood and Ravinia festivals as well as nine years of performances in Tokyo at Tokyu Bunkamura’s Orchard Hall. He co-founded the New York Chamber Symphony in 1977, serving as music director through the ensemble’s 25th anniversary season in 2002. In addition, he has guest-conducted most of the great orchestras of the world and made his operatic conducting debut in 1982 with the Washington Opera. His numerous television credits include annual appearances on PBS’s Live from Lincoln Center series with Mostly Mozart. In 1994, he was named Conductor of the Year by Musical America International Directory of the Performing Arts, the first American to receive this award. He is also a recipient of the prestigious Ditson Conductor’s Award from Columbia University and holds an honorary doctorate from the Juilliard School. In May 2002, the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) recognized him as a champion of American music.