Faculty & Conductor Profile:
Rosemary Thomson

This is Rosemary’s thirteenth season with NUOVA having previously conducted The Cunning Little Vixen, La Bohème, Dead Man Walking, Cendrillon, L’Elisir d’Amore, Albert Herring, Rusalka, Susannah, The Bartered Bride, Die Zauberflote, Cenerentola and Romeo et Juliet. Rosemary is known for creating vibrant concert programs presented with innovation.  She is in her eleventh season as Music Director of the Okanagan Symphony Orchestra.  Since her tenure began the symphony has seen a marked increase in audience and community support and they are now enjoying an expanded season and many sold out performances. Previous posts include Resident Conductor and Chorus Master for the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, Conductor in Residence of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra and Assistant Conductor of the Canadian Opera Company.  With these ensembles she worked closely with Hans Graf, Bramwell Tovey and Richard Bradshaw. Her guest conducting engagements have taken her across the country appearing on many occasions with symphonies from Victoria, Vancouver, Edmonton, London, Niagara and Toronto.  She has conducted for Opera Garden in Scotland and Richard Margison's Highland Opera Studio in Haliburton.  A passionate interpreter of new works and Canadian composers, Rosemary was the conductor for Continuum, a new music ensemble based in Toronto for fourteen seasons.  With Continuum, she has conducted across the country and on tour in Europe and released three CDs of Canadian repertoire.  She is the recipient of the Ernest MacMillan award for orchestral conducting and has been heard as a conductor and commentator on the CBC, the BBC and National Dutch Radio as well as Bravo Television. Recently Rosemary has conducted Messiah for the Regina Symphony, Manon for UBC Opera, Concerts with Christopher Gaze and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and new opera workshops for Calgary Opera.