Christopher James Lees is a promising young American conductor becoming increasingly recognized for his energized and nuanced performances of both standard and adventurous repertoire.

Mr. Lees has made debuts with the Detroit, Toledo, and Portland (Maine) Symphonies and served as an assistant conductor for multiple concert programs with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Detroit, St. Louis, and Kansas City Symphonies for Robert Spano, Leonard Slatkin, Stéphane Danève, Bramwell Tovey, and many others.  He has also previously appeared in performance with the National Arts Centre Orchestra, Ensemble Orchestral de Paris, Cabrillo Festival Orchestra, and at the Festival Internacional de Inverno de Campos do Jordao in Brazil, among others. 

Appointed a Gustavo Dudamel Fellow with the Los Angeles Philharmonic this season, Mr. Lees will make his debut with the orchestra in April 2013.

After two summers of study with Robert Spano at the Aspen Music Festival, Mr. Lees was named winner of both the 2011 James Conlon Conducting Prize and the 2012 Aspen Conducting Prizes, respectively.  In 2013, Mr. Lees will return for a third summer as Assistant Conductor for the Aspen Music Festival and School.

Mr. Lees was honored as one of only six conductors selected for the 2011 Bruno Walter Memorial Foundation National Conductor Preview, hosted by the League of American Orchestras and Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra. 

Trained as a pianist and equally comfortable in the opera pit, Mr. Lees has been Music Director for full productions of Don Giovanni & Little Women, and was Assistant Conductor for The Great Gatsby by John Harbison with the Aspen Opera Theater Center.

A passionate advocate for music of our time, Mr. Lees has given numerous performances of contemporary orchestral and chamber repertoire, and has collaborated closely with Pulitzer Prize winning composers William Bolcom, Joseph Schwantner, Jennifer Higdon, and Roger Reynolds, among others.  As Music Director for the Contemporary Directions Ensemble, Mr. Lees gained a reputation for conducting premiere performances, many in alternative concert formats, and curating innovative programs that connect contemporary chamber music with diverse art forms.

Mr. Lees holds a masters degree in conducting from the University of Michigan, where he studied with Kenneth Kiesler.  He was also a recipient of the Zander Conducting Fellowship with the Boston Philharmonic, where he assisted conductor Benjamin Zander in performances with the Boston Philharmonic, Ulster, and London Philharmonia Orchestras.

January 2013

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