CONDUCTORS

JACQUES LACOMBE
Music Director

New Jersey Symphony Orchestra Music Director Jacques Lacombe is renowned as a remarkable conductor whose artistic integrity and rapport with orchestras have propelled him to international stature.

Principal Guest Conductor of the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal from 2002 to 2006, he led the orchestra in more than 100 performances. He served for three years as Music Director of both orchestra and opera with the Philharmonie de Lorraine in France; he has been Music Director of the Orchestre Symphonique de Trois-Rivières since 2006.

Lacombe’s engagements for the 2011–12 season include his debut with the Orquesta Filarmonica de Malaga in Spain, return engagements with the Vancouver Opera in Roméo et Juliette and with the Deutsche Oper in Un Ballo in Maschera, as well as two rarely performed operas: Felix von Weingartner’s Die Dorfschule and Carl Orff’s Gisei – Das Opfer. Lacombe will make his Carnegie Hall debut as part of the May 2012 Spring for Music Festival with the NJSO.

Highlights of the 2010–11 season included the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra’s opening gala with Joshua Bell, season-opening concerts with the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal and return engagements with the Opera Company of Philadelphia for Roméo et Juliette, Deutsche Oper Berlin for Ariadne auf Naxos and Vancouver Opera for La traviata and the world premiere of John Estacio’s Lillian Alling. He led Le Cid starring Roberto Alagna and Béatrice Uria-Monzon at l’Opéra de Marseille, broadcast throughout Europe on Mezzo TV, and saw the release of a critically acclaimed NJSO CD, featuring Janáček’s Suite from The Cunning Little Vixen and Orff’s Carmina Burana.

In recent seasons, Lacombe made his debut with the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden and at the Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich. He led Turandot and Les Contes d’Hoffmann for Opéra de Monte-Carlo and Der fliegende Holländer, Eugene Onegin, Zemlinsky’s Der Traumgörge and concert performances of Waltershausen’s rarely heard Oberst Chabert at the Deutsche Oper Berlin. Oberst Chabert was released as a live CD by CPO in 2011. He has also led operatic productions at the Metropolitan Opera and Teatro Regio in Turin, given the world premiere of Vladimir Cosma’s Marius et Fanny at l’Opéra de Marseille and worked abroad with orchestras in Nice, Toulouse and Halle, as well as with the Orchestre Lamoureux in Paris, Slovakia Philharmonic, Budapest Symphony, Royal Flemish Philharmonic, Victoria Orchestra Melbourne and New Zealand Symphony Orchestra.

Born in Cap-de-la-Madeleine, Québec, Lacombe received his musical training at the Conservatoire de Musique de Montréal and at the Hochschule für Musik in Vienna.

Click here to go to Jacques Lacombe's personal website.

NEEME JÄRVI, (pronounced nām-eh yair-vē)
Conductor Laureate

The head of a musical dynasty, New Jersey Symphony Orchestra Conductor Laureate Neeme Järvi is one of today’s most respected maestros. He conducts many of the world’s most prominent orchestras and works alongside soloists of the highest calibre. A prolific recording artist, he has amassed a discography of more than 450 recordings.

Over his long and highly successful career, he has held positions with orchestras across the world and is currently Artistic Director of the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra. He became Artistic Director of the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande in January and will become the orchestra’s Music Director in September 2012. Until last season, he was Chief Conductor of the Residentie Orkest. He is Music Director Emeritus of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Principal Conductor Emeritus of the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and Conductor Laureate of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra.

Recent and future seasons include engagements with the Berliner Philharmoniker, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Orchestre de Paris, Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig and Weiner Symphoniker, as well as Los Angeles Philharmonic and Washington’s National Symphony Orchestra, among others. He continues his regular relationships with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra (for the start of a Tchaikovsky ballet cycle project) and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra (for continued recording and concert projects). He looks forward to the beginning of a stronger relationship with the Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart, and a return to the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra for a project culminating in a concert to celebrate his 75th birthday. He appears with the Orquesta Nacional de Espana, London Philharmonic and BBC Symphony.

Highlights of an impressive discography include critically acclaimed complete symphony cycles of Prokofiev, Sibelius, Nielsen and Brahms. Järvi has championed lesser-known composers such as Wilhelm Stenhammar and Hugo Alfvén, as well as Estonian composers including Rudolf Tobias and Arvo Pärt. He has recorded with Chandos, Deutsche Grammophon, BIS and EMI, among others.

Recent recordings include Mahler’s Symphony No. 7 with the Residentie Orkest (which was awarded International Record Prize "Toblacher Komponierhäuschen”) and a series of Johan Halvorsen’s orchestral works with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra.

Järvi has been honored with many international awards and accolades. In Estonia, these include an honorary doctorate from the Music Academy of Estonia in Tallinn and the Order of the National Coat of Arms from the President of the Republic of Estonia. The Mayor of Tallinn presented Järvi with the city’s first-ever ceremonial sash and coat-of-arms insignia, and he has been named one of the “Estonians of the Century.” Järvi holds honorary doctorates of Humane Letters from Detroit’s Wayne State University and the University of Michigan, as well as honorary doctorates from the University of Aberdeen and the Royal Swedish Academy of Music. He received the Commander of the North Star Order from King Karl Gustav XVI of Sweden.

Click here to go to Neeme Järvi's personal website.

JEFFREY GROGAN
EDUCATION & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT CONDUCTOR

American conductor Jeffrey Grogan comes to the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra from his most recent post as Director of Orchestras and Associate Professor at the Ithaca College School of Music. His humanistic leadership style, coupled with a strong command of skills as a musical communicator, has earned him an impressive reputation as a teacher, lecturer and clinician. He is in demand in these roles with music programs throughout the country. Read Complete Bio

GEMMA NEW
ASSISTANT CONDUCTOR

Recently appointed Assistant Conductor of the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, Gemma New is gaining positive attention for her dedication to orchestras and passion for music. New makes several guest-conducting debuts this year, including concerts with the Macon Symphony Orchestra and Orchestra Symphonique de Trois-Rivières in Canada. She is initiator and conductor of the Baltimore-based LUNAR Ensemble—a group of talented singers and instrumentalists who perform a variety of new and established chamber works. Read Complete Bio

HENRY KAO
GREATER NEWARK CHAMBER ORCHESTRA CONDUCTOR

A member of the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra's viola section since 1991, Henry Kao also occasionally performs with the orchestra as a violinist. He received Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in violin performance from the Manhattan School of Music, where he studied with Raphael Bronstein and Ariana Bronne; and a Professional Studies Certificate in viola performance from the Mannes College of Music under Sol Greitzer’s tutelage. Read Complete Bio