Biography

Randall Craig Fleischer currently serves as Music Director of the Youngstown Symphony, Hudson Valley Philharmonic, and the Anchorage Symphony. He has appeared as a guest conductor with many major orchestras in the United States and internationally, including engagements with the Cleveland Orchestra, Boston Pops, Hong Kong Philharmonic, Israel Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Houston Symphony, Utah Symphony, San Diego Symphony, Philadelphia Chamber Orchestra, Festival Český Krumlov (Czech Republic), and many others. He made his San Francisco Symphony debut in 2002.

Mr. Fleischer first came to international attention when, while serving his first of five years as associate conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra, he conducted Dvořák’s Cello Concerto with Mstislav Rostropovich as soloist during the NSO’s 1990 tour of Japan and the U.S.S.R. Also active as a composer and arranger, Mr. Fleischer is a national leader in the area of symphonic rock and world music fusion and his works and arrangements have been played by numerous major orchestras around the world. His most recent rock fusion project, Rocktopia, was broadcast nationally on PBS, ran for nine weeks on Broadway, and is currently touring the US. Co-created with Rob Evan, Rocktopia fuses iconic classic rock with classical composers.  His work Symphony in Step, written for the dance company Step Afrika, was premiered by the Anchorage Symphony and performed at the Atlas Theater in Washington DC. A passionate educator, Mr. Fleischer has co-authored several instructional pieces for children in collaboration with his wife, comedian Heidi Joyce. Winner of Newsweek magazine’s Parent’s Choice Award for his groundbreaking CD-ROM of Peter and the Wolf, Mr. Fleischer is the recipient of two honorary doctorates.