WILLIAM GARFIELD WALKER

CHIEF CONDUCTOR

Hailed by Klassik begeisert as a "master of intense sound waves with a pioneering spirit," William Garfield Walker is a trailblazing young American conductor swiftly making his mark on the international stage.

Dubbed a "Modern Day Maestro" by the Northside Sun, Walker is a two time recipient of the prestigious Sir Georg Solti Foundation US Career Assistance Award in 2022 and 2023. He currently serves as the Chief Conductor of the innovative Nova Orchester Wien (NOW!). Walker and NOW! have captivated audiences with symphonic works by Mahler, Sibelius, Prokofiev, and Shostakovich at the Wiener Musikverein and Konzerthaus. They have also performed a digital concert for the 2020 G20 economic forum and have collaborated with the City of Vienna, the Austrian Consulate in Milan as well as the US Embassy in Vienna and have performed for dignataries from many countries. Under Walker's baton, NOW! has introduced Austrian premieres of works by composers such as William Grant Still, Lili Boulanger, Jennifer Higdon, Florence Price and Germaine Tailleferre. In the 2023-2024 season Walker will join the Washington National Opera at the Kennedy Center for the Solti Foundation US Elizabeth Buccheri Residency as the Solti Conducting Fellow.

Walker's accolades encompass the Ansbacher Conducting Fellowship at the Salzburg Festival in 2021, the first prize in the 2023 American Prize, and the 3rd prize at the 2022 Only Stage International Conducting Competition. He held prestigious conducting fellowships at the Aspen Music Festival (2018) and the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music (2017). In March 2020, both the Mississippi House of Representatives and Mississippi Senate jointly honored Walker with a bipartisan Resolution, recognizing his musical achievements. Walker was additionally the recipient of the Bruno Walter Memorial Conducting Scholarship in 2017.

Walker attended masterclasses with Vladimir Fedoeseyev, Michail Jurowski, Neeme Jarvi, Paavo Jarvi, Krystian Jarvi, Cristian Măcelaru, Dwight Oltman, Jorma Panula, Vassily Sinaisky, and Leonard Slatkin. He is a graduate of the Royal College of Music, London where he studied cello with Alexander Boyarsky and conducting with Michael Rosewell, and the Music and Arts University of the City of Vienna where he studied conducting with Andreas Stoehr. During the initial COVID-19 lockdowns in tandem with founding the Nova Orchester Wien, Walker pursued additional academic studies at Harvard.

Before embarking on his conducting career, Walker was an accomplished cellist who frequently performed as a chamber musician and soloist in recitals and in front of orchestras. He joined the cello section of the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra at the age of 16. He later had the opportunity to perform under renowned conductors such as Riccardo Muti and Vladimir Jurowski. He studied with Richard Hirschl of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and participated in masterclasses with Natalia Gutman and Yo-Yo Ma.

For more information please visit: www.williamgarfieldwalker.com