2019 ANNUAL CONFERENCE

Speaker Bios

Donato Cabrera is the Music Director of the California Symphony and the Philharmonic, and served as the Resident Conductor of the and the Wattis Foundation Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra from 2009-2016. Since Cabrera's appointment as Music Director of the California Symphony in 2013, the organization has reached new artistic heights by implementing innovative programming that emphasizes welcoming newcomers and loyalists alike, building on its reputation for championing music by living composers, and committing to programming music by women and people of color. Cabrera has greatly changed the Las Vegas Philharmonic’s concert experience by expanding the scope and breadth of its orchestral concerts, hosting engaging and lively pre-concert conversations with guest artists and composers, and by creating the Spotlight Concert series that showcases the musicians of the Philharmonic in intimate chamber music performances. Cabrera has also reenergized the Youth Concert Series by creating an engaging and interactive curriculum-based concert experience. In recent seasons, Cabrera has made impressive debuts with the National Symphony’s KC Jukebox at the Kennedy Center, Louisville Orchestra, Hartford Symphony, Orquesta Filarmónica de Jalisco, New West Symphony, Kalamazoo Symphony, and the Reno Philharmonic. In 2016, he led the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in performances with Grammy Award-winning singer Lila Downs. Cabrera made his Carnegie Hall debut leading the world premiere of Mark Grey’s Ătash Sorushan with soprano, Jessica Rivera. During his seven seasons as Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra, Cabrera took the group on two European tours, winning an ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming of American Music on Foreign Tours, and receiving critical acclaim for a live recording from the Berlin Philharmonie of Mahler's Symphony No. 1.

Laura Jackson is now in her tenth season as music director of the Reno Philharmonic and continues to win praise for her artistry, leadership, and creative community engagement. Innovative composer-in-residence projects as well as vibrant performances of traditional repertoire have helped the Reno Phil reach new heights. New works that Jackson has commissioned with the Reno Phil have enjoyed multiple performances nationwide. In addition to her concerts in Reno, Ms. Jackson guest conducts nationally and internationally. Her performances include concerts with the symphonies of Algeria, Alabama, Baltimore, Berkeley, Charlottesville, Detroit, Eugene, Flint, Hartford, Hawaii, Orlando, Philippine Philharmonic, Philly POPS, Phoenix, San Antonio, Toledo, Toronto, Winnipeg, and L’Orchestre symphonique de Bretagne. Jackson served as the first female assistant conductor of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra from 2004 to 2007. Prior to her appointment in Atlanta, she studied at the University of Michigan and spent summers as the Seiji Ozawa Conducting Fellow at the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s Tanglewood Music Center in 2002 and 2003.

Chad Smith, Chief Operating Officer for the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, is responsible for the artistic oversight and coordination of the orchestra’s programming, as well as the organization’s production, orchestra operations, media, and educational initiatives. Smith’s tenure with the orchestra has been defined by groundbreaking artistic initiatives, working closely with Music Directors Esa-Pekka Salonen and now Gustavo Dudamel, including the launch of new orchestral series, major multi- disciplinary projects, dozens of festivals, and an unparalleled commitment to composers and the music of today. He has also overseen the launch of many of the organization’s defining educational programs, including YOLA, a program which has provided daily after-school music training to thousands of children in several of L.A.’s most underserved communities. In March of 2018, Smith was named the next Artistic Director of the Ojai Music Festival, where his first planned festival will be in 2020. Smith began his career in 2000 at the New World Symphony, working closely with conductor Michael Tilson Thomas. In 2002, he first joined the LA Phil, where he was responsible for planning the orchestra’s Green Umbrella new music series, as well as its classical programming at the Hollywood Bowl. After briefly serving as the New York Philharmonic’s head artistic planner, in 2006 he returned to the LA Phil in the expanded role of Vice President of Artistic Planning, a position he held until being named COO in 2015. A trustee of New England Conservatory, he also serves on the advisory board of the Music Academy of the West and is a member of the Executive Committee for the Avery Fisher Artist Program. A native of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, he earned a B.A. in European history from Tufts University as well as B.M. and M.M. degrees in vocal performance from the New England Conservatory.

After a decade with the LA Phil, Julia Ward was appointed to the newly created role of Director, Humanities. She is responsible for uncovering innovative ways to contextualize the orchestra’s work and generate meaningful dialogues through it. Prior to joining the LA Phil, Julia worked in programmatic and community engagement roles at Arts Presenters, Washington Performing Arts, the Kennedy Center, and the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage. She is also a freelance writer and researcher, most recently having served as the executive editor of the ADC award-winning Past / Forward: The LA Phil at 100.