North Carolina’s Greensboro Symphony Appoints New Music Director 

Conductor Christopher Dragon will assume the role as of the 2024/25 concert season

Following a comprehensive two-year search process, which included extensive interviews, auditions, musicians feedback, board members, staff, subscribers, and audience members, the Greensboro Symphony (GSO) has welcomed the Australian conductor Christopher Dragon as its new Music Director. 

Currently the Resident Conductor of the Colorado Symphony and Music Director of the Wyoming Symphony, Dragon will be the first new Music Director of the GSO in over two decades. 

In addition to planning and conducting GSO’s Masterworks Series, Dragon will also lead several GSO POPS concerts this year, as well as the annual GSO Education Concert Series, which offers around 50,000 music education experiences to children in the Triad area each year. 

Hailing from Perth, Australia, Dragon began conducting studies in 2011. His mentors included Leonid Grin, Paavo, and Neeme Jarvi at the Jarvi Summer Festival, Fabio Luisi at the Pacific Music Festival, and Jorma Panula. 

Dragon’s career began with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra, and in 2015, he joined the Colorado Symphony. He has since worked with major orchestras including the San Francisco Symphony, San Diego Symphony, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Singapore Symphony, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, and the WDR Funkhausorchester. He has collaborated with artists such as Renée Fleming, Joshua Bell, Cynthia Erivo, and the Wu-Tang Clan and Cypress Hill, among others. 

“He impressed me in many ways,” reflected a GSO Musician during Dragon’s candidacy. “He is the right combination of serious, fun, and keeping perspective. His musical requests were reasonable but yet pushed us to give it our all. Home run. He is the one.”

“I am thrilled to begin this journey with the Greensboro Symphony Orchestra as its new Music Director,” Dragon added in the press release. “I look forward to working with the talented musicians of the GSO, board, and administration to create unforgettable symphonic experiences to inspire the next generation of music lovers. My wife, Ariadna, and I absolutely loved our time in Greensboro and look forward to immersing ourselves into the vibrant Greensboro community (along with our pup Churro).”