Hugh Wolff to Lead National Orchestra of Belgium
Wolff to maintain Director of Orchestras Post at NEC while beginning his tenure as New Chief Conductor in Belgium, starting September 2017.
Starting in September of 2017, Hugh Wolff, NEC’s Stanford and Norma Jean Calderwood Director of Orchestras, will take over the baton from Andrey Boreyko, the National Orchestra of Belgium’s music director since 2012. According to Thomas Novak, NEC’s Interim President, Wolff will continue to serve in his capacity as Director of Orchestras at NEC, conducting four to five concerts per year, which is consistent with his assignments at the Conservatory to date. Wolff's concerts at NEC this season include an April 27 program in Boston's Symphony Hall with the NEC Philharmonia and violinist Alexi Kenney.
Novak discussed Wolff’s new appointment.
“We are proud of Hugh Wolff to be appointed as the new chief conductor of the Belgian National Orchestra. He has had a long and distinguished professional career with orchestras around the globe, so this latest news adds yet another success to his many achievements. We are grateful that his commitment to New England Conservatory remains solid, providing such a rich experience for our students in the orchestra program.”
Wolff states:
"I’m happy to announce that I've accepted the position of music director of the Orchestre National de Belgique/Nationaal Orkest van België effective September 2017. Belgium and Brussels are at the heart of the European Union, whose very existence is premised on cooperation among different cultures. The success of this endeavor has never been more important. The arts—and music in particular—have a critical role to play and I’m excited to be part of that. My commitment to NEC remains very strong—I will continue as Director of Orchestras at NEC and Boston will continue to be my home.”
Founded in 1936 as a reorganization of the Brussels Symphony Orchestra, the National Orchestra of Belgium has been led by conductors Karl Böhm, Pierre Monteux, and André Cluytens (1958–1967), among others. In addition to its regular concert season at the Brussels Centre for Fine Arts and elsewhere in Belgium and on tour, the orchestra performs with finalists in the Queen Elisabeth Music Competition. Under Music Director Walter Weller (2007–2012), a CD recording was released every year on the Fuga Libera label.
Hugh Wolff has previously visited the National Orchestra of Belgium to conduct Mahler's Third Symphony (in 2010) and First (in 2012). He is seen and heard in the video on this page conducting Mahler's Fifth Symphony with the NEC Philharmonia in a season-opener concert in NEC's Jordan Hall this past September.
Prior to joining the NEC faculty in 2008, Wolff was the chief-conductor of the hr-Sinfonieorchester in Frankfurt from 1997 to 2006, and the principal conductor and music director of the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra in Minnesota from 1988 to 2000. He has conducted many of the most important orchestras in the United States, including those in Boston, New York, Chicago, Cleveland, and San Francisco. Internationally, Wolff is a regular guest conductor in Europe, Japan, Canada, and Australia. He has conducted the Philharmonia Orchestra in London, the Gewandhausorchester in Leipzig, the Orchestre National de France, the Czech Philharmonic, Bavarian and Berlin Radio Orchestras, the Munich Philharmonic and many others. He also frequently conducts at summer music festivals from Aspen and Tanglewood to Ravinia and Wolf Trap.
Born in Paris to American parents, Wolff spent his early years in London and Washington DC. His final year in high school, he studied piano with Leon Fleisher and composition with George Crumb. After graduating from Harvard College in 1975, Wolff won a fellowship to study conducting with Charles Bruck and composition with Olivier Messiaen in Paris.
As a conductor he has a well-defined vision on the functioning of a symphony orchestra and a special interest in education: he strives to make symphonic music more interesting and appealing for youngsters. In addition, Hugh Wolff emphasizes the importance of a thematic approach of each concert, he also does so for each concert season. He is known for his creative programming and placing opposing works together.
More about the National Orchestra of Belgium
Please direct media inquiries to:
Lisa Elghazi, Media Relations
New England Conservatory
646-373-9946
lisa@celestapr.com