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Born in New York City, Alexander Platt has forged a unique career among the younger American conductors, combining a true commitment to regional orchestras with an ability to lead cutting-edge projects on the international scene. Looking forward to his twelfth season as Music Director of both the Waukesha Symphony in Wisconsin—which he has returned to its status as one of Wisconsin's leading orchestras—and the equally distinguished Marion Indiana Philharmonic, he is also in his second season as Principal Conductor of the Boca Raton Symphonia, an assignment born of his debut with Sir James Galway, on 48 hours' notice, at the International Festival of the Arts BOCA. Having previously spent 12 extremely successful seasons as Music Director of the Racine Symphony Orchestra—which he transformed from a struggling ensemble into an artistically and financially thriving institution—he has also guest-conducted the Minnesota Orchestra, the St Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra, Camerata Chicago, the Lexington and Hudson Valley Philharmonics, and the Houston, Charlotte, Columbus, Flagstaff, Sioux City and Indianapolis Symphonies, while his European assignments have included the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, the City of London Sinfonia, the Freiburg Philharmonic in Germany, and on several occasions the Aalborg Symphony in Denmark. Alexander made his New York debut with the Brooklyn Philharmonic before thousands in Central Park, and was then invited back to lead them in the Dvorak New World Symphony at the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge.
Following major assignments with the Minnesota Opera and Skylight Opera Theatre, Alexander Platt made his debut with Chicago Opera Theater in 1997, and was appointed Resident Conductor in 2000. Since then he has led the Chicago premieres of such challenging 20th-century masterpieces as John Adams’ NIXON IN CHINA, Britten’s DEATH IN VENICE and A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM; the Chicago stage premiere of Schoenberg’s ERWARTUNG; and the world premiere recording of Kurka’s THE GOOD SOLDIER SCHWEIK, all to high acclaim in Opera News, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Financial Times of London, and both the major Chicago papers. In 2007 he made his Canadian debut leading John Estacio’s FROBISHER at the Banff Music Centre, with Opera Canada magazine singling out his work as vital in that revival’s success. In 2009 he leads the Chicago premiere of the Bizet/Peter Brook masterpiece, LA TRAGEDIE DE CARMEN.
Alexander Platt spends his summers in New York’s Hudson River Valley, as the sixth Music Director of The Maverick Concerts, in Woodstock, New York—the oldest summer chamber-music series in America, which under his direction has become a thriving, eclectic festival. A recent highlight of his achievements there was his conducting the world premiere of his own chamber version of David Del Tredici’s FINAL ALICE for soprano and large orchestra. Created under a Rockefeller grant from the New York State Music Fund, his new version was hailed by The New York Times as a workable version of Del Tredici’s 1976 masterpiece; recently Mr. Platt has been sanctioned to create a similar chamber version of a similarly neglected American masterwork, Leonard Bernstein’s SONGFEST.
Alexander Platt was educated at Yale College, as a conducting fellow at both Aspen and Tanglewood, and then at King’s College Cambridge under a British Marshall Scholarship. At Cambridge he led all the important musical societies, and as conductor of the Cambridge University Opera Society led a revival of Britten’s neglected OWEN WINGRAVE which earned him high praise in the London press. During this time he also made his debut at the Aldeburgh Festival, and reconstructed the lost chamber version of the Mahler Fourth Symphony, which has gone on to become a classic of the repertoire. In addition to recording for National Public Radio, the South-West German Radio and the BBC, his 2004 recording of Max Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy with violinist Rachel Barton still appears frequently on radio stations across America
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