Music Director
Morihiko Nakahara
Read Maestro Nakahara's blog at the Conductor's Corner from b106.7 FM, Columbia's hometown radio station!
Recognized by critics, orchestras, and audiences alike as “a brilliant young conductor” (Free Times) with “a poet’s sensitivity and a craftsman’s efficiency” (Spokesman-Review), Morihiko Nakahara begins his second season as music director of the South Carolina Philharmonic. The 2009/2010 season also marks his seventh season with the Spokane Symphony Orchestra (Wash.), first as associate conductor and now in a redefined role of resident conductor.
Increasingly regarded as a leading young conductor equally at home in a wide range of repertoire and concert formats, Nakahara was featured in the League of American Orchestras’ prestigious Bruno Walter National Conductor Preview hosted by the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra in March 2005. Since then, he has developed a close working relationship with the JSO, conducting the orchestra annually and serving as its associate conductor during the 2007/2008 season.
Known for his charismatic presence on and off the podium, innovative and audience-friendly programming skills, and thoughtful interpretations of both standard and contemporary repertoire, Nakahara previously served as Music Director of the Holland Symphony Orchestra in Michigan. Recent guest conducting engagements include appearances with the symphonies of Toledo, Lansing, Lubbock, Southwest Michigan and Missoula, as well as with the Lexington Philharmonic. During the 2009/2010 season he will guest conduct the Peoria Symphony Orchestra (Ill.).
Acclaimed as a versatile artist and a passionate believer in music education for all ages, Nakahara has designed and conducted numerous educational and community engagement concerts. Nakahara is also a popular guest conductor and clinician with youth orchestras, collegiate ensembles, and high school honor orchestras/bands, including the Boston University Tanglewood Institute's Young Artist Orchestra. As a personable ambassador for classical music, Nakahara makes frequent appearances on local media outlets as well as at local businesses and service organizations.
A native of Kagoshima, Japan, Nakahara holds degrees from Andrews University and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. He resides in Columbia, S.C.
For more information, please visit http://www.morihikonakahara.com.
Photos by Katie Kirkland/SCP.
