The New Haven Symphony Orchestra Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Perry So has been appointed as its next Music Director. Perry will assume the title of Music Director beginning with the 2024-2025 season, succeeding Alasdair Neale, who will end his five-year tenure with the orchestra in May 2024. The announcement was made this morning at a press conference held at the Stetson Branch of the New Haven Free Public Library. NHSO Board of Directors President Keith B. Churchwell, MD says: We are truly excited that Maestro So has agreed to join the NHSO as its Music Director beginning with our 2024-25 season.

On September 1, 2022, Perry So will begin a three-year term as Artistic Director and Chief Conductor (Director titular y artístico) of the Orquesta Sinfónica de Navarra (Navarre Symphony Orchestra), based in Pamplona, Spain. Founded in 1879 by Pablo Sarasate as the Orquesta Santa Cecilia, the orchestra is the oldest continually functioning symphonic ensemble in Spain. Perry will conduct five subscription concerts each season, in addition to tours, recordings and other major projects of the orchestra.

Perry’s official statement on his appointment: “From the first moment in our first rehearsal together, I recognized a desire for musical adventure that mirrored my own. I immediately felt at home. Since our first encounter three years ago, from the four concerts the Orquesta Sinfónica de Navarra and I have given together over two wonderful weeks, I have taken with me a deep impression of the quality of this orchestra, the spirit of excellence within these great musicians, and the cultural sophistication of this beautiful historic city.

“In the next three years, my goals are to develop our distinct musical identity and to build our cohesion as an ensemble. We will deepen our work in the core repertoire, and broaden our horizons by introducing more contemporary composers and recovering great music by marginalized composers from the past. We will be an orchestra that is flexible, adventurous, and equally at home in music from the eighteenth century to the present. I am full of excitement for what we can accomplish together, and humbled by the trust that has been placed in me. We will work tirelessly together to be worthy custodians for the future of this great legacy left by Pablo Sarasate.

“I am grateful to María Antonia Rodríguez for her collegiality over the past months, and look forward to the benefit of her rich experience as a musician of the highest level as we embark on our work. I thank her team for their welcome and the positive beginning to our collaboration. Lastly, I send the musicians of the orchestra a warm embrace. I look forward to the artistic fulfillment we will discover together in the years to come, and to creating the countless moments of musical joy that motivate all that we do.”

Perry led a reduced and socially distanced Ann Arbor Symphony in their season finale in the Michigan Theater. The program included Biber's Battalia, a chamber version of Bartok's Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta, and Weingartner's arrangement of Beethoven's Grosse Fuge for string orchestra. The concert is available for streaming until June 30.