Carl Ray St.Clair (born June 5, 1952) is an American conductor.

Early life and education

Born in

Hochheim, Texas Hochheim ( ) is an unincorporated community in DeWitt County, Texas, United States. It was founded as a settlement for German immigrants along the Guadalupe River. Geography Hochheim is located at , above sea level. It is located on the Texas ...

, St.Clair went to school in

Yoakum, Texas Yoakum is a city in Lavaca and DeWitt counties in the U.S. state of Texas. The population was 5,908 at the 2020 census. History The area was sparsely settled until a townsite was laid out with the construction of the San Antonio and Aransas ...

, and graduated from Yoakum High School. He attended the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

and later studied conducting with

Gustav Meier Gustav, Gustaf or Gustave may refer to: *Gustav (name), a male given name of Old Swedish origin Art, entertainment, and media * ''Primeval'' (film), a 2007 American horror film * ''Gustav'' (film series), a Hungarian series of animated short cart ...

at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

and Leonard Bernstein at

Tanglewood Tanglewood is a music venue in the towns of Lenox and Stockbridge in the Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts. It has been the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra since 1937. Tanglewood is also home to three music schools: the ...

. He, was music director of the

Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra The Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra (A2SO) is an American orchestra based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It is one of two symphony orchestras in Southeast Michigan alongside the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. Founded in 1928, the A2SO plays most of its conc ...

(Michigan) from 1985 to 1992, and of the

Cayuga Chamber Orchestra The Cayuga Chamber Orchestra, founded in 1976, is based in Ithaca, New York. Each season includes an Orchestral Series, a Chamber Music Series, and special holiday and educational programs. History The Cayuga Chamber Orchestra, formally designa ...

(Ithaca, New York) from 1986 to 1991. Beginning in 1986, he was an assistant conductor with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. In 1990, he was a recipient of the

Seaver/National Endowment for the Arts Conductors Award The Seaver/National Endowment for the Arts Conductors Award was an award for conductors in the United States. History The award was established in 1985 as the ''Affiliate Artists' Seaver Conducting Award''. The award was being given every two or t ...

. St.Clair has served on the faculty of

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) is a public university in Edwardsville, Illinois. SIUE was established in 1957 as an extension of Southern Illinois University Carbondale.Butler 1976, p. 18 It is the younger of the two major inst ...

Success as a conductor

In January 1990, he conducted the

Pacific Symphony The Pacific Symphony is a symphony orchestra located in Orange County, California. The orchestra performs at the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall as a part of the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa, California. From 1987 to 201 ...

for the first time, and on the success of that appearance, he was named the orchestra's music director, a position he still holds. During his Pacific Symphony tenure, he and the orchestra have commissioned and recorded several works, including

Richard Danielpour Richard Danielpour (born January 28, 1956) is an American composer. Early life Danielpour was born in New York City of Persian Jewish descent and grew up in New York City and West Palm Beach, Florida. He studied at Oberlin College and the New E ...

's ''An American Requiem'' (Reference Recordings) and

Elliot Goldenthal Elliot Goldenthal (born May 2, 1954) is an American composer of contemporary classical music and film and theatrical scores. A student of Aaron Copland and John Corigliano, he is best known for his distinctive style and ability to blend various ...

's ''Fire Water Paper: A Vietnam Oratorio'' (Sony Classical) with cellist

Yo-Yo Ma Yo-Yo Ma ('' Chinese'': 馬友友 ''Ma Yo Yo''; born October 7, 1955) is an American cellist. Born in Paris to Chinese parents and educated in New York City, he was a child prodigy, performing from the age of four and a half. He graduated from ...

. Other recordings include "Radiant Voices" and "Postcard" by composer in residence

Frank Ticheli Frank Ticheli (born January 21, 1958) is an American composer of orchestral, choral, chamber, and concert band works. He lives in Los Angeles, California, where he is a Professor of Composition at the University of Southern California. He wa ...

(Koch International Classics), and the two piano concertos of

Lukas Foss Lukas Foss (August 15, 1922 – February 1, 2009) was a German-American composer, pianist, and conductor. Career Born Lukas Fuchs in Berlin, Germany in 1922, Foss was soon recognized as a child prodigy. He began piano and theory lessons with J ...

(harmonia mundi). The orchestra and St.Clair host an annual festival of American composers, including "Uncharted Beauty: The Music of Lou Harrison" (2005–2006), "Los Sonidos de México" (2006–2007), and "The West — Music inspired by the American Frontier" (2007–2008). In Europe, St.Clair was the principal guest conductor of the

Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart The Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra (German: ''Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart des SWR'') was a German radio orchestra based in Stuttgart in Germany. History The ensemble was founded in 1945 by American occupation authorities as the orchest ...

from 1998 to 2004, where his work included a three–year recording project of the Villa–Lobos symphonies. He became '' Generalmusikdirektor'' (General Music Director, or GMD) of the Staatskapelle Weimar in 2005, a post he held for three years. In 2008 he took up the post of GMD of the

Komische Oper Berlin The Komische Oper Berlin is a German opera company based in Berlin. The company produces opera, operetta and musicals. The opera house is located on Behrenstraße, just a few steps from Unter den Linden. Since 2004, the Komische Oper Berlin, al ...

, with an initial contract of six years, but in May 2010 he resigned effective with the end of the 2009/10 season. In 2012, St.Clair was appointed to Principal Conductor and Artistic Leader of the Thornton Symphony Orchestra at the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

Thornton School of Music The USC Thornton School of Music is a private music school in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1884 only four years after the University of Southern California, the Thornton School is the oldest continually operating arts institution in Los An ...

. St.Clair has worked on the creation and implementation of various symphony education programs, including "Classical Connections", "arts-X–press" and "Class Act". In 2006, he worked with the German

Bundesjugendorchester The Bundesjugendorchester (''National Youth Orchestra of Germany'', BJO; ) is the national youth orchestra of Germany, composed of pre-university students aged 14–19. It is supported by the project company of the Deutscher Musikrat and is bas ...

(National Youth Orchestra). On September 13, 2013, St.Clair was appointed Principal Conductor of the .Yendry Miranda (2013-08-13)
"Carl St.Clair es el nuevo director de la Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional"
''

La Nación ''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal '' Clarín''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argentina. Its motto is: "''La Na ...

''. Retrieved 2013-08-13.

Personal life

St.Clair and his wife Susan live in

Laguna Beach Laguna Beach (; ''Laguna'', Spanish for "Lagoon") is a seaside resort city located in southern Orange County, California, in the United States. It is known for its mild year-round climate, scenic coves, environmental preservation efforts, and a ...

, California, with their three children.

References

External links

Komische Oper Berlin English-language biography

Pacific Symphony biography

Staatskapelle Weimar German-language biography

Profile
Schmidt Artists International {{DEFAULTSORT:St.Clair, Carl American male conductors (music) 20th-century American conductors (music) 21st-century American conductors (music) University of Texas at Austin College of Fine Arts alumni University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance alumni Southern Illinois University faculty USC Thornton School of Music faculty 1952 births Living people People from DeWitt County, Texas People from Laguna Beach, California Classical musicians from Texas 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians