Biography

Scott Terrell is associate professor of orchestral studies at Louisiana State University, where he holds the Virginia Martin Howard Chair. He was previously music director of the Lexington Philharmonic in Kentucky, where the orchestra won multiple Copland Awards for his dedication to contemporary American composers. He also served as resident conductor and director of education for the Charleston Symphony in South Carolina, and was assistant conductor of the Minnesota Orchestra. He makes his San Francisco Symphony debut this week with Psycho.

As a guest conductor, Terrell has appeared with the Philadelphia Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony, Detroit Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, San Diego Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, St. Louis Symphony, Houston Symphony, Toronto Symphony, Vancouver Symphony, Rotterdam Philharmonic, and Hong Kong Sinfonietta. He has been a regular guest conductor and teacher at the Aspen Music Festival since 2001, where he leads concerts and mentors conducting students.

On the opera stage, Terrell has led Kentucky Opera in Stephen Paulus’s oratorio To Be Certain of the Dawn, Bernstein’s Trouble in Tahiti, Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel, and Osvaldo Golijov’s Ainadamar. He has also conducted Opera Hong Kong’s gala concert, Arizona Opera’s production of The Magic Flute, and led Piazzolla’s Maria de Buenos Aires at Fort Worth Opera, Arizona Opera, and Aspen.