REPORTS TO:   President/CEO with an indirect report to the Board of Directors. The President/CEO will oversee the work done by the Music Director and report to the board on their behalf. Candidate will receive feedback through a formal musician survey process on a regular basis.

POSITION DESCRIPTION: The ideal candidate shall demonstrate exceptional musicianship and conducting skills; conducting experience should be significant, including work with professional musicians; knowledge of a broad range of repertoire; strong interpersonal, leadership, and communication skills; vision, passion, and ability to make symphonic music relevant and exciting for existing and new audiences.

The Music Director is responsible for the fulfillment of the orchestra’s artistic potential and its image in the community. They are responsible for overseeing all the CSO artistic activities (repertoire, programming, and artistic production) and ensuring that artistic excellence is maintained and developed. Music Director shall provide a clear artistic vision by providing programming that is imaginative and with a varied repertoire, engaging with musicians and inspiring audiences by making symphonic music accessible to all people, and deepening local, regional, and national relationships to maintain and build audiences. Music Director shall collaborate with the President/CEO, as well as the Music Advisory, Marketing, and Finance Committees to ensure adherence to established artistic goals, budgets, and assist in fundraising and community engagement goals.

THE CSO: Now entering our 88th season, the Canton Symphony Orchestra (CSO) serves the greater Stark County region through dynamic live orchestral performances. As a fully professional symphony, the CSO reaches more than 20,000 people each year through concerts, as well as educational and community programs.

The CSO’s season includes seven MasterWorks concerts, three Employees Health Pops Series concerts, five Divergent Sounds Series concerts, over 25 educational and community concerts, and three youth symphony ensembles performing three times each season. Supported by the Canton Symphony Orchestra Chorus, the orchestra performs at least twice annually with a community choir of over 100 voices. Attendance averages over 800 for the MasterWorks series and over 1,000 at the EH Pops concerts. Thousands more listen via rebroadcasts on WKSU Ideastream. The full orchestra performs at Umstattd Hall and the administrative offices are held at the Zimmermann Symphony Center which is attached to the hall.

The CSO supports the next generation of orchestral music professionals through programs such as the Composer Fellowship and Conducting Fellowship and prides itself on meaningful community collaborations. Working each season with the Players Guild Theatre and Canton Ballet are examples of concert collaborations with other prominent arts institutions in the region.

The CSO is governed by a 24-member board of directors and is supported by a professional administrative staff with more than 60 years of combined service to the orchestra. CSO musicians are members of the AFM Local 111. The current operating budget is $1.9 million. CSO board, staff, and musicians are undergoing a strategic planning process in July of 2025. More information can be found at cantonsymphony.org.

THE COMMUNITY: The Canton Symphony Orchestra is in Canton, Ohio and is located one hour south of Cleveland, Ohio. The area boasts national attractions, historic sites and museums, vibrant art and music districts, unique shopping, outdoor recreation, and great concerts, festivals, and other special events. In 2023, Canton-Massillon was named a top 10 most arts-vibrant mid-size community in America by SMU Data Arts. The region offers affordable living, access to higher education institutions including the Cleveland Institute of Music and Oberlin Conservatory, access to two airports (Cleveland International Airport, and Akron/Canton Regional Airport), and an investment in the arts through Cultural Tourism grants with a total economic impact of over $19 million.

ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Drive Artistic Vision for the organization and uphold the mission through innovative and engaging programs.
• Develop diverse programming in close collaboration with the President/CEO and Music Advisory Committee. This includes the MasterWorks series (7 concerts) and the Employers Health Pops Series (3 concerts), and other concerts produced by the Canton Symphony Orchestra.
• Design concerts and programs that ensure high quality, challenging, and enjoyable orchestral experience for audiences and musicians.
• Conduct rehearsals and outlined programs and concerts. Music Director is expected to conduct diverse programs at the CSO (Masterworks, Employers Health Pops concerts, community collaborations, etc.) each season.
• Identify guest conductors for concerts as needed.
• Participate in the audition process as laid out in the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
• Maintain a respectful and engaging relationship with the orchestra.
• Oversee, mentor, and develop the Conducting Fellow/Assistant Conductor position including overseeing their conducting/programming on the educational concerts in conjunction with the Director of Education and Community Engagement.
• Serve as a visible ambassador for the CSO, participating in social, civic and media activities, raising funds, and helping to develop public awareness and to continue to raise the artistic profile of the orchestra throughout the community
• Partner with local artistic organizations and other arts groups to grow audiences and develop community engagement.
• Attend Board meetings as requested and the Annual Meeting and Dinner to provide reports on artistic activities. Embrace other board requests as needed.
• Work with the Board and President/CEO to align concerts with and ensure adherence to the approved annual budget.
• Adhere to the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
• Spend sufficient time in the Stark County community to know it and be known by it.
• Other responsibilities as deemed necessary and requested by the Board or President/CEO.

TRAITS AND CHARACTERISTICS:

• Excellent leadership, communication, public speaking, and interpersonal skills
• Capacity to organize and influence people in support of artistic vision, as well as personal accountability and diplomacy traits
• Interpersonal skills and team spirit, including the ability to work collaboratively with management, board members, volunteers, and members of the orchestra
• A passion for the orchestra and its repertoire and an ability to translate that passion into well-coordinated programs and activities that carry out the orchestra’s mission

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Demonstrated track record of significant professional conducting experience
• An advanced degree(s) in music
• A minimum of 10 years of professional conducting experience is preferred
• Mastery of an instrument/experience as a performer or soloist
• Prior experience conducting diverse genres of music including classical, pops, ballet, opera, contemporary, educational, and youth concerts
• Ability/capacity/willingness to be available to devote the necessary time to perform all the activities in Stark County

About Canton Symphony Orchestra

The mission of the Canton Symphony Orchestra is to perform and present orchestral music at the highest possible artistic level to enrich, entertain, educate, and challenge diverse audiences in a variety of settings. In doing so, we will serve our community, manage our resources responsibly, and be accountable to our donors, audiences, employees and volunteers. In carrying out the Association’s mission to perform and present live orchestral music at the highest possible artistic level, the orchestra will perform both standard and contemporary repertoire, with a continued focus on presenting artists of diverse backgrounds. It will continue to commission new music, showcase established guest soloists and new young talent. It will provide service to American orchestras by offering its musicians experience in performing a wide range of repertoire, under the direction of conductors of high quality.

Connections working at Canton Symphony Orchestra