Baltimore Symphony President and CEO Paul Meecham will step down from his chair after a decade to assume the same post with the Utah Symphony and Utah Opera in July. He will succeed Patricia A. Richards, who is serving as the interim president.
Mr. Meecham has served some of the world's most renowned orchestras, including the London Sinfonietta, New York Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony and Seattle Symphony. He is also credited, along with music director Marin Alsop, with repairing the Baltimore Symphony after a long period of financial strife.
Born in the U.K., Paul Meecham has a degree from the University of Birmingham and plays both the piano and violin.
Per a press release, Mr. Meecham said:
"It is with great enthusiasm that I accept the offer to lead Utah Symphony | Utah Opera as its president and chief executive officer. Having admired for some time the artistic and institutional growth of this unique organization, I am incredibly excited about its future potential and the opportunity to work with its forward-thinking artistic leaders, Thierry Fischer and Christopher McBeth, the committed board of trustees as well as the many talented musicians, staff, volunteers and supporters. Their shared ambition for the next exciting phase of Utah Symphony | Utah Opera is very compelling."
The Utah Symphony, like the BSO, is a 52-week orchestra and holds an annual summer festival in Park City. The company merged with the Utah Opera in 2002.
As president, Mr. Meecham will lead the largest classical organization in the Intermountain West. With its 175-show-per-season bill, the company will also produce the summer Deer Valley Music Festival in Park City.
Mr. Meecham will start in Utah July 1. Until then, here is a Mr. Meecham-led BSO below.
