Page 20 - FLIPBOOK ALL SOM WINTER 2022_Neat

buzz | tidbits
b uzz | tidbits
WHO’S WHO

WHAT’S WHAT

NEWS | EVENTS | AWARDS | SPOTLIGHTS

TEDDY ABRAMS

MUSICAL AMERICA’S CONDUCTOR OF THE YEAR 2022

eddy Abrams, Music Director and Conductor of the Britt Festival
TOrchestra, has more going on in his life that we in Southern
Oregon may be aware of. Abrams, now in his eighth season as Music
Director of the Louisville Orchestra, has been named Conductor of
the Year for 2022. From his earliest days in Louisville, Abrams has
been lauded for his efforts to connect the orchestra with the commu-
nity, exemplified most recently by his musical responses to the pan-
demic and Black Lives Matter movement, as well as creative initiatives
like his rap-opera The Greatest, honoring heavyweight champion
and Louisville native Muhammad Ali and featuring local rapper
Jecorey Arthur.
AWARDS award…; the honor, however, should be shared by my extraor-
“I’m incredibly grateful and overwhelmed to receive this

dinary colleagues here in Louisville, both on- and offstage,” says
Abrams. “I am very proud of the work we’ve accomplished so far
in Louisville, and I believe that we are beginning an era of further
transformation and growth in a city that deserves it and in an
industry that needs bold redefinition. After a particularly chal-
lenging period in Louisville’s history, I am thrilled that Musical
America has offered this recognition for our orchestra and this
spotlight for our beautiful city and state.”

During the pandemic, Abrams participated in bringing together
numerous Louisville-based musicians to record the collaborative song
“Lift Up Louisville,” with proceeds benefiting the One Louisville
COVID-19 Response Fund. The program included one-man pop-up
shows in neighborhoods around the city. He also offered personal ten-
minute online “comfort concerts” and co-hosted a radio show.

Conductor, composer, pianist, and clarinetist Teddy Abrams was raised
in Oakland, California, becoming a protégé of Michael Tilson Thomas
at age 12. He earned a bachelor’s degree from the San Francisco
Conservatory of Music at 18.

www.musicalamerica.com

Photo by Christopher Briscoe

18 www.southernoregonmagazine.com | winter 2022