Andrew Litton, an internationally known conductor who grew up on Manhattan's Upper West Side, is taking over as music director of the New York City Ballet. Litton, who made his debut with the company in January, will join the troupe in September 2015. He succeeds Faycal Karoui, who held the position from 2006 through 2012.
Litton, 56, has been music director of the Colorado Symphony Orchestra since 2013 and of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra in Norway since 2003. He served as music director of the Dallas Symphony from 1994 to 2006.
"To return to New York, and especially to Lincoln Center where I attended Juilliard and have had so many formative experiences is a dream come true," said Litton in a statement. He added that the orchestra "performs more varied and challenging repertoire than most symphony orchestras," citing ballets by Stravinsky, Tchaikovsky and Bernstein.
A graduate of the Fieldston School near Lincoln Center, Litton received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Juilliard in piano and conducting. After graduating, Litton became Mstislav Rostropovich's assistant with the National Symphony in Washington, D.C. That led to various guest appearances and his first major post, as music director of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra in England, from 1988 to 1994.
One of Litton's earliest professional breaks came in the world of dance: at age 18 he made his Broadway debut as an on-stage pianist for Rudolf Nureyev in "Rudolf and Friends." Earlier this year Litton released a solo jazz piano album, "A Tribute to Oscar Peterson." In the below video, Litton conducts the Dallas Symphony in music by Gershwin.
