BOZEMAN — Notman Huynh is excited to take over as conductor for the Bozeman Symphony and he's hopeful for the fall concert season. Huynh was chosen by the symphony board from a list of 6 candidates and introduced during a small ceremony Monday night.
He's most recently from Portland but has worked around the world. As part of the interview process, Huynh was guest conductor back in December with the Bozeman Symphony for two sold-out performances.
He told MTN's Chet Layman that he was energized by the community's involvement with not only the orchestra but also the symphonic choir and all of the members. He says he wants to feed on that energy and help share it with the community.
He has already begun his work and says he remains optimistic for the coming fall season. A schedule is being worked and should be released soon. His resume is posted below.
Norman Huynh has established himself as a conductor with an ability to captivate an audience through a multitude of musical genres. This season, Norman continues to showcase his versatility in concerts featuring Itzhak Perlman, Hip-Hop artists Nas and Wycleff Jean, and vocal superstar Storm Large.
Born in 1988, Norman is a first-generation Asian American and the first in his family to pursue classical music as a career. He is currently the Harold and Arlene Schnitzer Associate Conductor of the Oregon Symphony and maintains an international guest conducting schedule. Upcoming and recent engagements include the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, Detroit Symphony, Rochester Philharmonic, Orchestra Sinfònica del Vallès, Eugene Symphony, Grant Park Music Festival and the Princess Galyani Vadhana Youth Orchestra of Bangkok. He has served as a cover conductor for the New York Philharmonic and Los Angeles Philharmonic with John Williams.
Norman has been at the forefront of moving orchestral music out of the traditional concert hall into venues where an orchestra is not conventionally found. In 2011, he co-founded the Occasional Symphony in Baltimore to celebrate holidays by performing innovative concerts in distinct venues throughout the inner-city. The orchestra performed on Dr. Seuss’ birthday at Port Discovery Children’s Museum, Halloween in a burnt church turned concert venue and Cinco de Mayo in the basement bar of a Mexican restaurant. As Music Director, Norman commissioned new works by multiple composers to give concert goers the rare experience of being present for a piece of music’s world premiere.
Norman is a recipient of the 2015 Yale Distinguished Music Educator Award for his work with the Portland (Maine) Symphony Orchestra’s Musical Explorer’s Program. As the Assistant Conductor of the PSO from 2013-2016, Norman visited over sixty schools across the state of Maine and co-founded Symphony & Spirits, a series of events for young professionals, between the ages of 21-39, to make the orchestra more accessible and engaging for a younger audience.
The late Kurt Masur selected Norman to study with him privately in Leipzig through the Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy Scholarship. Norman is an alum of the Aspen Music Festival’s Conducting Academy, studying with Robert Spano. In the summer of 2014, he spent two weeks honing his craft at the Tanglewood Music Center. Norman currently resides in Portland, OR and enjoys skiing, boardgames and riding his motorcycle.
