It’s been a long time coming, but the Sarasota Orchestra has a new music director. His name is Giancarlo Guerrero.
Sarasota Orchestra CEO and President Joe McKenna called him the obvious choice.
“He's a perfect fit in terms of chemistry and his rapport with the musicians the week he was here was just fantastic. He was very energized and engaging and we just think it's a real coup to have landed Giancarlo,” McKenna said.
Guerrero was a Sarasota guest conductor with the orchestra last winter.
“I am pleased to become Sarasota Orchestra’s next music director,” said Guerrero. “From my first rehearsal with them last winter, I was instantly impressed with this orchestra, filled with terrific musicians who take tremendous pride in their orchestra. It was clear that everyone was prepared and ready to play, displaying a palpable joy in music-making.”
Guerrero is the Nashville Symphony’s music director. He will have been at the helm 16 years at the end of the coming season. He will transition to Music Director Emeritus of the Nashville Symphony after the 2024-25 season.
In Nashville, he’s fostered the music of contemporary composers.
Including one who you might recognize from the “hair band,” Winger. C.F. “Kip” Winger has reinvented himself as a serious orchestral composer. The symphony premiered Winger’s First Symphony last spring.
Guerrero has won six Grammy awards.
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McKenna said, “His stature as a music director in the international conducting world made him a perfect fit for us and especially so with the aspiration and vision we have for a new music center.”
The orchestra has a mission of building of the region’s first concert hall expressly designed for creating acoustic music.
Guerrero will serve as music director-designate this season at Sarasota Orchestra. That's a common industry practice.
And audiences can hear him lead the orchestra in that role in the orchestra’s first Masterworks concerts of the season, the weekend of Nov. 8-10.
Guerrero will become the Sarasota Orchestra’s seventh music director.
