An essay in Fusion Magazine by Anna Rakitina, assistant conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, recently turned my thoughts toward the changing sound of leadership in classical music. She reflects on how, for generations, the orchestral podium remained one of the art form’s most tradition-bound spaces, shaped largely by a lineage of male conductors and artistic directors. “Being a female conductor in today’s music world does not feel too uncommon, though, for sure, it was not always like this,” she says. “The rise of women in the profession is a relatively recent development and, as with many other leadership and governance activities, most positions have been held by males.”
Rakitina observes that the podium long seemed an exclusively male domain because conducting was believed to demand qualities traditionally attributed to men, including strong leadership and character, strict and unwavering resolve, cool-headedness, and physical stamina. Although it is eminently clear these characteristics are shared by both genders, this division kept conducting closed to women, as it did many other professions and careers. In recent years, however, that landscape has begun to shift. From the Metropolitan Opera to Europe’s most storied festivals, women are increasingly guiding artistic vision and interpretation, a change as Rakitina suggests, that is as much about listening differently as it is about who holds the baton.
Artistic leadership on the Monterey Peninsula not only reflects this broader moment but has long served as a cultural way-shower. Long before international headlines declared a changing podium, our region was galvanized by two remarkable women whose vision and leadership established world-class musical institutions here and profoundly influenced our cultural identity. Carmel impresarios Dene Denny and Hazel Watrous were early pioneers who demonstrated that women were more than capable of guiding major artistic enterprises.
For 25 years, the great American conductor Marin Alsop, shaped by the mentorship and artistic example of Leonard Bernstein, led the Cabrillo Music Festival across the Bay in Santa Cruz. Another Bernstein-mentored conductor, Kate Tamarkin, began her tenure with the Monterey Symphony a quarter century ago, strengthening the region’s connection to that legacy of musical leadership. Three years ago, the Denny-Watrous tradition continued with the appointment of Norwegian-born conductor Grete Pedersen as artistic director of the Carmel Bach Festival, which they founded.
Another bright star among the Peninsula’s women artistic leaders is acclaimed violinist Tien-Hsin Cindy Wu, who established Sunkiss’d Mozart Summerfest in 2024, a June chamber music festival featuring leading international musicians performing in intimate and beautiful settings throughout the region. Wu and Pedersen join an existing tradition that has quietly demonstrated the power of female musical leadership on the Peninsula for more than a century.
Monterey Symphony in March
Speaking of the ascendency of women in our musical organizations, the Monterey Symphony celebrates its Eighth Annual Women’s Night Out on March 21 at Sunset Center followed by the March concert program conducted by Jayce Ogren. The party this year is inspired by the “White Lotus” television series. Come dressed in your Maui, Sicily, or Thailand exotic resort chic attire and groove to the music of San Francisco-based Axon Orkestra. By the way, for many seasons now, the Symphony has been administered by Nicola Reilly and her dazzling crew of talented women, in what I would describe as one of the best management teams in its eight decades of musicmaking. Women’s Night Out is just one of many innovations and creative offerings that people can enjoy each season in addition to the subscription concert series.
About this month’s concert, Ogren says, “Our March program features star violinist Stefan Jackiw in Tchaikovsky’s delightful and virtuosic violin concerto. We’re thrilled that Jackiw will be making his debut with the Monterey Symphony. The concert opens with Moño by Marina López, a Monterey Symphony co-commission and part of our 80th anniversary celebration featuring exciting new works. We’ll also play Sibelius’s seventh symphony, his greatest tribute to nature, humanism and spirituality.”
For tickets, information and details about pre-concert lectures, the Saturday Night Talk Back and the Sunday pre-concert Lobby Sessions music see www.montereysymphony.org or call (831) 626-8511.
Ensemble Monterey ‘Romantic Ideals’
Ensemble Monterey brings us a “journey from Baroque elegance to modern reflection” in their third concert of the season, called “Romantic Ideals.” Described as a thoughtful program celebrating life, love, joy, playfulness and wonder, audiences will hear works by Pulitzer Prize–winning composer Caroline Shaw, J.S. Bach’s Wedding Cantata featuring oboist Peter Lemberg, and Franz Schubert’s Piano Quintet in A Major, “The Trout.” Soprano Lori Schulman brings her warmth and clarity to Shaw’s sound world.
Performances take place Saturday at 7 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church in Monterey and Sunday at 7 p.m. at Messiah Lutheran Church in Santa Cruz.
For more information and to purchase tickets see ensemblemonterey.org or call (831) 333-1283.
Dover Quartet
The Dover Quartet, hailed by BBC Music Magazine as “one of the greatest quartets of the last 100 years,” appears at Sunset Center March 28 at 7:30 p.m. Dover has been favorably compared to great American string ensembles, such as the Emerson or Guarneri Quartets, for their depths of originality and musicianship. Their last appearance for CMMB was a streaming performance online during the pandemic, so the organization is delighted to welcome them back in person.
They will perform a diverse program with works by Jessie Montgomery, Franz Joseph Haydn, Karol Szymanowski and Felix Mendelssohn, compositions spanning the years from 1772 to 2012. The concert will be preceded by a 30-minute talk at 6:30 by UC Santa Barbara music professor and musicologist Derek Katz. For tickets and information see www.chambermusicmontereybay.org, or call (831) 625-2212.
Carmel Bach tickets
A reminder: Carmel Bach Festival tickets go on sale on March 16 for its 89th season that takes place July 11-25. Artistic director Grete Pedersen has created a season of music that explores the theme, “the nature of sound.” This year the festival will collaborate with a featured composer, Puerto-Rican-born composer Angélica Negrón. Check out the website for details at www.BachFestival.org.
