June 24, 2025
Forward Thinking: Conductor, Advocate, Change Agent
By Simon Woods
In Brief | Marin Alsop has shattered glass ceilings as an adventurous artist, music director of U.S. and international orchestras, passionate champion of music education for all, and tireless advocate for women conductors. This summer, as she receives the Gold Baton award from the League of American Orchestras, Alsop assesses her career—and the state of the art.
Marin Alsop’s resume is almost impossible to summarize briefly. She was music director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra from 2007 to 2021 and principal conductor of the São Paulo State Symphony in Brazil from 2012 to 2019. Currently she is chief conductor of the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra; artistic director and chief conductor of the Polish National Radio Symphony; principal guest conductor of the Philharmonia Orchestra in London; principal guest conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra; chief conductor of the Ravinia Festival in Chicago, and music director of the National Orchestral Institute and Festival at the University of Maryland. It’s a stellar, remarkable career.