Credit: Carlin Ma
The Seattle Symphony’s Board of Directors has appointed Xian Zhang as its next music director—she will be the first woman to lead a major West Coast orchestra.
Xian will begin a 5-year contract in September 2025, serving as music director designate during the 2024/2025 season when she is scheduled to lead the orchestra in two highly anticipated programs.
Xian is an acclaimed conductor in the United States, with eight seasons as music director of the New Jersey Symphony and widely praised appearances with the Metropolitan Opera, Philadelphia Orchestra (a GRAMMY™ award-winning collaboration), Los Angeles Philharmonic and Boston Symphony Orchestra, among others.
Xian said, “Joining the Seattle Symphony now feels like coming home… I look forward to connecting with audiences on a deeper level, experiencing inspiring concerts together and discovering new music at Benaroya Hall, one of my all-time favorite performance halls to conduct in.”
Born in China, where she began conducting, Xian has lived and worked in Italy, and held positions in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Australia. She is currently Artistic Ambassador of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and Conductor Emeritus of Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano.
Leave a Reply