MEET THE CONDUCTOR: Benjamin Manis

Benjamin Manis conducts BEETHOVEN CONCERTO NO.2
April 13 at 8PM

Background: American conductor Benjamin Manis will be marking a successful end of his tenure as an Associate Conductor of the Utah Symphony in the summer of 2023. During his time with the orchestra, he led performances on tour throughout the state of Utah as well as at Abravanel Hall and the Deer Valley Music Festival. Before moving to Salt Lake City, Mr. Manis spent three seasons as Resident Conductor of the Houston Grand Opera, making his debut with Verdi’s Rigoletto. Other highlights of his time in Houston include performances of Carmen, Romeo et Juliette and The Snowy Day. He led four world premieres, among them the 2020 world premiere of Marian’s Song with the subsequent HGO Digital filmed version and Miller Outdoor Theatre performances of the same work. Mr. Manis returned to HGO in the 22/23 season to lead productions of Tosca and El Milagro del Recuerdo to critical acclaim.

In August of 2023, Mr. Manis assisted Donald Runnicles during the semi-staged production of Madame Butterfly, a finale of last year’s Grand Teton Music Festival. The 23/24 season marks returns to the Utah Symphony including a gala performance with Itzhak Perlman, as well as a debut with Utah Opera leading a production of The Little Prince. In spring of 2024 Mr. Manis will lead a double bill of Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas and Britten’s Rape of Lucretia at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music.

Three-time winner of the Solti Foundation US Career Assistance Awards (2023, 2022, 2019), Mr. Manis assisted renowned conductors such Thierry Fischer, Gianandrea Noseda, David Robertson, and Stéphane Denève at the St. Louis, Dallas, and National symphonies. Over the course of three years in the Aspen Conducting Academy, he assisted and worked closely with conductors such as Robert Spano, Ludovic Morlot, Leonard Slatkin, James Conlon and Vasily Petrenko. After winning the Aspen Conducting Prize, Mr. Manis was invited to returned to Aspen in the summer of 2021 as assistant conductor, where he conducted two programs with the Aspen Chamber Symphony.

Mr. Manis studied cello and conducting at the Colburn School, where he conducted outreach concerts in public schools across Los Angeles and performed Lutoslawski’s Cello Concerto as soloist with conductor Robert Spano. A student of the late Larry Rachleff, he completed his Master of Music degree in 2019 at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music.

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