Kenneth Kiesler was born in New York City. He studied music from an early age; he played trumpet, sang in choruses and, at age 15, Kiesler conducted his first concert, Benjamin Britten’s Ceremony of Carols when the director took ill prior to the concert. Kiesler studied music at the University of New Hampshire where he received the Bachelor of Music in conducting and music history in 1975. He received his master’s degree in orchestra conducting in 1980 from the Peabody Conservatory of Music,Johns Hopkins University. At age 19, he conducted the first performance of Gershwin's original jazz-band score of Rhapsody in Blue since 1925 which garnered national attention. Kiesler was recipient of a conducting fellowship at the Aspen Music School and his teachers and mentors have included Fiora Contino, Julius Herford, John Nelson, Erich Leinsdorf, James Wimer, and Carlo Maria Giulini.
Kiesler was a participant in the League of American Orchestras’ 1990 Leonard Bernstein American Conductors Program with the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center] and the 1991 Carnegie Hall Centenary conducting class with Pierre Boulez and L’Ensemble InterContemporain.
Kiesler is the conductor of many acclaimed recordings on the Naxos, Dorian, Equilibrium and Pierian labels. Kiesler was nominated for a Grammy for his recording of Darius Milhaud’s opera L’Orestie d’Eschyle in 2014. Kiesler has conducted many of the world’s leading ensembles. He has conducted at the Aspen, Atlantic, Breckenridge, Meadowbrook, Sewanee and Skaneateles music festivals.
Kenneth Kiesler served as music director of the Illinois Symphony Orchestra from 1980 to 2000, during which time he founded the Illinois Symphony Chorus, the Illinois Chamber Orchestra, and led debuts at Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall. He was also assistant conductor of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra from 1980 to 1983, music director and conductor of the South Bend Symphony Orchestra from 1984 to 1988 and principal conductor of the Saint Cecilia Orchestra from 1992 to 1995. From 2002 to 2007 Kiesler was music director of the New Hampshire Symphony Orchestra.
Kiesler’s advocacy for new music and living composers has included conducting more than 15 world and American premieres. Since 1995, Kiesler has been professor of conducting and director of orchestras at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance. He is a sought after teacher and mentor of conductors internationally.
Kiesler is the father of three children, Laura, Adam and Aliyah. He currently resides in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Source: Wikipedia
| Title |
Subname |
Catalogue |
Key |
Year |
Type |