Alexander Prior (b.1992) is currently completing his term as an Assistant To Guest Conductors (Chairman’s Fellow) for the Seattle Symphony Orchestra. His position runs from the 25th of January up to July 2010. Within one month Alexander has already lead the orchestra in an open rehearsal of Mahler's 4th Symphony and conducted five educational concerts of “Peter and the Wolf”. In this position he assisted conductors including Spano, Dausgaard, Perlman and Morlot.

Alexander makes one of his main priorities to educate and attract young audiences to great music. He has done series of Talks, Q&A sessions, Pre-concert lectures, blogs, media-projects aimed at the younger audiences, both in his role at the Seattle Symphony, and at other occasions.

Alexander completed with distinction four years at the St. Petersburg Conservatory, studying Symphonic and Opera conducting with Professor Alexander Alexeev, a pupil of Hans Svarovsky, and composition with Professor Anatoly Korolev.

Alexander has been selected to be a Conducting Fellow at the Tanglewood Music Centre for summer 2010 where he will share the podium with James Levine and assist several well-known conductors such as Robert Spano and Stefan Asbury.

Alexander is the recipient of numerous Awards, including 2nd prize at the Leeds conducting competition at the age of 16, and before that the International Prokofief Composition Competition.  He was in the top six in the Mahler conducting competition 2010. 

Alexander made his UK conducting debut with The National Symphony Orchestra at the Barbican in March 2007, receiving an immediate re-invitation to conduct the orchestra in April 2008.

Recent highlights include conducting the Northern Sinfonia, the result of a re-invitation after music broadcast from Channel 4 UK; conducting the Royal Philharmonic at The Barbican, London, including his own music, and music by John  Adams . Alexander has lead numerous operatic performances in Russia, including “Dido and Aeneas”, “La Traviata”, “The Tsar’s Bride”, “The Barber of Seville” and “Eugene Onegin”.

Alexander has conducted both Youth orchestras and Youth Opera companies and has been invited to conduct at the Northwest Mahler Youth Festival this summer, give talks/workshops for young people and is regularly asked to adjudicate for young performer and youth orchestras competitions.

As a composer his works have been performed by many leading orchestras and ensembles, including his Ballet Mowgli, which ran under his baton in The Kremlin , Moscow with the New Opera Orchestra.  He recently conducted the premier of his 4th  Symphony “Gogol” with the St. Petersburg  State  Academic  Symphony Orchestra.

REVIEWS

"Prior is an absolute professional… no longer a Wunderkind, he is on the way to being a Wonder-adult."

The Independent

"I must report that he’s rather good conductor… his four years of conducting studies at the St Petersburg Conservatory have given him a sophisticated technique."

Richard Morrison, The Times

"Britain’s teenage conducting phenomenon!"

Adam Sweeting, Telegraph

"...one of the most exciting prospects we’ve seen for long time."

The Yorkshire Post

ALEXANDER PRIOR PHOTO GALLERY

Click here for NPR article, April 10, 2010. "A Teenage Prodigy Joins The Seattle Symphony"

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Email: alexander_p@classicalmatters.com

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