Lesley Leighton named SBSO Principal Guest Conductor

Lesley Leighton, noted conductor, singer, and music educator, has been named Principal Guest Conductor of the San Bernardino Symphony Orchestra.

“As the San Bernardino Symphony Orchestra continues to expand, it is critical that we add a world-class Principal Guest Conductor to share artistic responsibilities on the podium and give our orchestra and our audience an extra musical perspective.” explained Symphony Music Director and Conductor Anthony Parnther. “In this role, Maestra Leighton will serve as a cover, share concerts with me, and begin to conduct on her own SBSO series as we branch out into the Inland Empire even further. We’re all tremendously excited to have an artist of her caliber joining the ranks of our organization.”

Added Symphony Executive Director, Dr. Anne Viricel, “This addition represents an important strategic expansion for our growing organization and allows for an additional level of support we have desired for several years.”

Leighton is also the Artistic Director of the Los Robles Master Chorale and Director of Choral Activities at California State San Bernardino. She has earned high praise from music critics for her “ravishing” (Los Angeles Times) conducting that leaves audiences “mesmerized” (Orange County Register) and merits “enduring applause” (Asia Journal). About one particular performance with Los Angeles Master Chorale, the Huffington Post proclaimed, “The Chorale’s Lesley Leighton stole (the) show.”

In addition to curating and conducting the Los Robles Master Chorale’s own concert series each season, she has previously prepared the organization for appearances with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, New West Symphony, American Youth Symphony, and, of course, for the San Bernardino Symphony Orchestra, among others.

Shared Leighton, “I have collaborated with Maestro Parnther for many projects both on the stage and in the studio, and I adore working with such a smart and accomplished musician whom I admire. It’s exciting to work with Anthony in this new capacity, and I look forward to what we can bring together to the music scene in the IE.”

“We were thrilled to welcome Maestro Leighton as the leader of our San Bernardino Symphony Chorus, which made its debut in 2021 and brought some of California’s finest voices into the concert hall,” stated Symphony Board President Dean McVay, adding, “this additional collaboration will further enhance the ability of our organization to provide the finest quality musical performance in the region.”

Leighton has also enjoyed a long and fruitful relationship with the world renowned Los Angeles Master Chorale, based at Walt Disney Concert Hall, for which she was named assistant conductor in 2010 and, a year later, was promoted to associate conductor, the first in the organization’s history, a post she held from 2011 to 2016. She regularly conducted the Los Angeles Master Chorale Chamber Singers and also created Los Angeles Master Chorale’s first Young Composer’s Competition in 2016, conducting the world premiere of the winning composition at the annual High School Choir Festival in April 2016 at Walt Disney Concert Hall.

Additionally, Leighton, a “seasoned musician” (USC News), has earned tremendous respect within the music industry for preparing choirs for Gustavo Dudamel, Esa-Pekka Salonen, John Adams, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Bramwell Tovey, Leonard Slatkin, Michael Tilson Thomas, and Grant Gershon for performances at the Hollywood Bowl, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Royce Hall and Shrine Auditorium, among other major venues.

Leighton made her Los Angeles Opera and Los Angeles Philharmonic conducting debuts in the 2018-19 Season, conducting David Lang’s opera the loser, and his work for a 1,000 voices, crowd out, respectively, in addition to preparing Los Robles Master Chorale for Ojai Festival (Stravinsky’s Rake’s Progress), Los Angeles Philharmonic (Lang’s crowd out), New West Symphony (Prokofiev’s Alexander Nevsky), and San Bernardino Symphony (John Wineglass world premiere Voices of the West). 

A principal solo artist for more than two decades, Leighton has performed as a soprano with many of the world’s eminent conductors, including Salonen, Dudamel, Tovey and Frühbeck de Burgos, Pierre Boulez, Zubin Mehta, Lorin Maazel, and Simon Rattle. Her opera credits include principal appearances with New York City Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, Köln Opera, Paris Opera and Glyndebourne. Her voice can also be heard on more than 100 major film soundtracks, including most recently, Captain Marvel, Mulan, Sing2, The Secret Life of Pets, and Lion King.

A native of Los Angeles, Leighton studied conducting at Loyola Marymount University, where she graduated with a B.A. in conducting. Following graduate conducting study at UCLA, she earned an M.M. in vocal performance, and a D.M.A. in choral music, both from the University of Southern California.

Tickets Available

Tickets for the San Bernardino Symphony Orchestra’s 2022 Season are available online at www.sanbernardinosymphony.org or by calling the box office at (909) 381-5388. Box Office hours are 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Friday.