Music Director – Stefan Sanders

Stefan Sanders Headshot

 

Acclaimed conductor, audience builder, communicator and arts advocate, Stefan Sanders is thrilled to begin his 7th season as the Music Director for your Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra. Stefan is also equally excited to embark on his 5th season as the Music Director for the Central Texas Philharmonic in Austin, TX.

Having collaborated with an array of distinguished orchestras and guest artists, Stefan’s recent guest conducting appearances include the San Antonio Symphony, Orquesta Sinfónica de Yucatán (Mérida, MX), Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional de Cuba (Havana, Cuba), Sarasota Orchestra, Rochester Philharmonic, Virginia Symphony, Naples Philharmonic, Stockton Symphony, Tuscaloosa Symphony, Orquesta Sinfónica de Guayaquil (Ecuador), Filharmonia Warminsko-Mazurska (Poland), Filharomonia Podcarpacka (Poland), Symphoria (Syracuse, NY), Austin Symphony Orchestra, Austin Opera, and the Round Top International Festival Institute. Since 2017 Stefan has also served as an assistant conductor for the New York Philharmonic. This season, Stefan’s guest conducting engagements include return visits to the San Antonio Philharmonic, and debuts with the Canton Symphony Orchestra in Ohio.

From 2014-2018 Stefan served as the Associate and Resident Conductor for the Buffalo Philharmonic, where he lead the orchestra in over 200 performances on all of the orchestra’s series. In 2016, Stefan was one of 5 featured conductors at the League of American Orchestra’s “Bruno Walter National Conductor Preview.” This prestigious conductor showcase is designed to feature talented young conductors poised for music directorships with American Orchestras and was hosted by Maestro Giancarlo Guerrero and the Nashville Symphony.

Prior to a career as a conductor, Stefan was an internationally renowned trombonist, having performed as a soloist in North America, Asia and Europe. His performance of Eric Ewazen’s Concerto for Bass Trombone and Orchestra, with the Czech Philharmonic can be heard on the Albany Records label. Mr. Sanders was a member of the Buffalo Philharmonic’s trombone section for seven seasons and has performed with several orchestras including the New York Philharmonic, Seattle Symphony Orchestra, the Florida Orchestra, and the Seattle Opera’s 2001 production of Wagner’s Ring Cycle. Stefan was a fellow at the American Academy of Conducting at Aspen under the tutelage of maestros, Larry Rachleff, Robert Spano, and Hugh Wolff. He is a graduate of the Juilliard School, the University of Texas at Austin, and the Interlochen Arts Academy.

Featured Musician

Dr. Clark Spencer – Acting Principal Viola

Clark SpencerViolist and Violinist Clark Spencer is an active solo, chamber, and orchestral performer living in Wilmington, NC. He is currently assistant principal viola of the Oregon Mozart Players and a founding member of the Blue Box Ensemble. Clark has performed with the Fayetteville Symphony (NC), Long Bay Symphony Orchestra (SC), Eugene Symphony, Eugene Opera, the Corvallis Symphony, Newport Symphony, and the Oregon Bach Festival. He has had the privilege of performing under the batons of Andrew Linton, Marin Alsop, Jeffrey Kahane, Helmut Rilling, and Gunther Schuller.

Originally from Lancaster, PA, Clark earned his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in performance from Boston University, where he studied viola with Michelle LaCourse and violin with Peter Zazofsky. He recently completed his Doctorate in Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Oregon where he studied with Dr. Leslie Straka. His doctoral research on the Sonata in G by Paul Ben-Haim culminated in a new edition for solo viola. Clark has also studied with Martha Strongin Katz and Jeffrey Irvine. He has performed in masterclasses with Kim Kashkashian, Arnold Steinhardt, Roger Tapping, Pamela Frank, the Ying String Quartet, the American String Quartet, the Orion String Quartet, and the Muir String Quartet.

Clark is an experienced violin and viola teacher. He completed his long term Suzuki training with Karin Hallberg and Louise Scott during his studies at the University of Oregon. In addition to his own studio, Clark has taught for the University of Oregon’s Community Music Institute, where he taught group classes, coached chamber music and conducted a middle school string orchestra. He also coached violin and viola sections of the South Salem High School Chamber Orchestra and the Salem Youth Orchestra. During the summers of 2009 and 2010, Clark served on the faculty at the Vermont Youth Orchestra’s Summer Program, Reveille!

To Educate. To Entertain. To Inspire.

The Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1956 in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and is a professional, regional orchestra whose mission is to educate, entertain, and inspire the citizens of the Fayetteville, North Carolina region as the leading musical resource.  Praised for its artistic excellence, the Symphony leads in the cultural and educational landscape for Fayetteville and the southeastern North Carolina region.

The Fayetteville Symphony typically performs 8 concerts during any given season performing both at Methodist University and Fayetteville State University. Partnerships with other agencies include collaborative performances with Cape Fear Regional Theatre, chamber concerts at St. John’s Episcopal Church, as well as the city’s annual Independence concert with fireworks. The Symphony brings music to the schools and the community by performing educational concerts, as well as having its own Fayetteville Symphony Youth Orchestra, after school strings and summer music camps.

This organization is supported in part by a space grant from the BB&T Term Endowment of Cumberland Community Foundation, Inc.


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Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 302
Fayetteville, NC 28302

Office Location:
310 Green St., Suite 101
Fayetteville, NC 28301
P: (910) 433-4690
F: (910)433-4699
Office Hours:
Monday-Thursday
9:00am-5:00pm

info@fayettevillesymphony.org

Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra

310 GREEN ST., SUITE 101
Fayetteville, NC 28301

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