ESA-PEKKA SALONEN 
& CONDUCTING STAFF

One of the most influential and creative forces in music, SF Symphony Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen has—through his many high-profile conducting roles, work as a leading composer, and advocacy for accessibility and varied musical voices—shaped a unique vision for the present and future of the symphony orchestra. His restless innovation drives him constantly to reposition classical music in the now.

Beginning with his debut in 1974, and continuing through his remarkable 25-year tenure as Music Director (1995–2020) and his current post as Music Director Laureate, Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony have developed a dynamic and productive partnership.

Herbert Blomstedt, Conductor Laureate of the San Francisco Symphony (SFS), served as the Symphony’s Music Director from 1985 to 1995. During that decade, he raised the orchestra’s standards and its international stature.

A passionate communicator, Daniel Bartholomew-Poyser brings clarity and meaning to the concert hall, fostering deep connections between audiences and performers. 

Daniel Stewart joined the conducting staff of the San Francisco Symphony as Wattis Foundation Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra in 2019. He is the first Youth Orchestra alumnus to hold this post.

Ross Jamie Collins is a Finnish-British conductor and is a part of the inaugural class of Salonen Fellows in the Negaunee Conducting Program at the Colburn School. Previously a student of Jorma Panula at the Panula Academy in Finland, Collins began his studies with Esa-Pekka Salonen at Colburn in fall 2019.

American conductor Kyle Dickson is quickly building a reputation as an innovative and compelling presence on the podium. He is Assistant Conductor of the Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles, and he previously served as Music Director of Chicago’s South Loop Symphony.

Molly Turner is a Chinese-born conductor and composer. Highlights of the 2022–23 season include her debut at the San Francisco Symphony’s SoundBox, a school concert with Orchestre de Paris, conducting the premiere of her own orchestra work with the Tacoma Youth Symphony, and the premiere of Anthony Brandt’s Diabelli 200 at Performing Arts Houston.