Giancarlo Guerrero
Music Director & Conductor
Conductor Giancarlo Guerrero is in his fifth season as Music Director of the Eugene Symphony, where his contract was recently extended for a second term. In his first two seasons in Eugene, he conducted a series of all nine Beethoven symphonies.
A champion of new music, he initiated a guest-composer series with the Eugene Symphony. Under his leadership the ensemble has hosted several of America’s most respected composers, including John Adams, John Corigliano, Jennifer Higdon, Aaron Jay Kernis, and Michael Daugherty.
As a guest conductor, Guerrero made a highly successful debut with The Cleveland Orchestra in May 2006, leading an all-orchestral program of music from Wagner’s “Ring” cycle (and was immediately invited to return). He has also recently made successful debuts with several other major American orchestras including the Baltimore Symphony (July 2006), Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, Seattle Symphony, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl. Other recent orchestral engagements in North America include appearances with the orchestras of Columbus, Detroit, Houston, Minnesota, Oregon, Nashville (where he opened and closed the 2005/06 season), North Carolina, Phoenix, San Antonio, San Diego, and the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C. among others.
In addition to his commitments in Eugene, Guerrero’s 2006-07 conducting engagements include appearances with the symphony orchestras of Columbus, Indianapolis, Louisville, Nashville, Winnipeg and Edmonton, as well as Orange County’s Pacific Symphony and a return to the Casals Festival in Puerto Rico.
Also in demand in both Central and South America, Guerrero conducts regularly in Venezuela, both with the Orquesta Sinfonica Simon Bolivar as well as the Orquesta Sinfonica de Venezuela. His debut at the Casals Festival with Yo-Yo Ma and the Puerto Rico Symphony in 2005 was followed by a return in February 2006 for a performance of the Verdi Requiem. He also made his debut at the Teatro Colon in Argentina in 2005.
In June 2004, Mr. Guerrero was awarded the Helen M. Thompson Award by the American Symphony Orchestra League, which recognizes outstanding achievement among young conductors nationwide.
Born in Nicaragua and raised in Costa Rica, Guerrero received his bachelor’s degree in percussion from Baylor University in Texas and his master’s degree in conducting from Northwestern University in Illinois. His principal conducting teachers were Michael Haithcock, Stephen Heyde, Victor Yampolsky and Guillermo Scarabino. Prior to his tenure with the Minnesota Orchestra, he served as music director of the Tachira Symphony Orchestra in Venezuela.
For more information on Giancarlo Guerrero, please visit his site.
photo credit for Mr. Guerrero's image goes to Giraudier