NEWS CENTER
Hartford Symphony Orchestra extends music director Carolyn Kuan’s contract through 2027
The Hartford Symphony Orchestra announced Friday that it has extended the contract of current music director Carolyn Kuan for three more years until the spring of 2027.
Kuan has been leading the symphony since 2011. She is the 10th music director in the Hartford Symphony Orchestra’s 80-year history and the first woman to hold the position. Her initial contract was for three years and has been extended multiple times.
Before the extension was announced, Kuan’s contract only lasted through this current season.
Kuan’s influence on the Hartford Symphony Orchestra has been considerable. She has strayed from the old classical canon and has highlighted the works of Black, female and Eastern composers whose works were unfairly downplayed in the past. Among these is the early 20th-century composer Florence Price, whose Symphony No. 1 in E Minor was performed in February and whose Violin Concerto No. 1 will be performed at the next Masterworks concert on Oct. 20. The violin soloist will be Melissa White, the second beneficiary of the Joyce C. Willis artist-in-residence grant, a new program that began during Kuan’s leadership that is designed to bring fresh talent to the ensemble.
To read the full article from the Hartford Courant, click here.
Published October 13, 2023
By Christoper Arnott
