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Adam Boyles appointed director of MIT Symphony

Cambridge, MA... Adam Kerry Boyles, Music Director of the Southern Arizona Symphony Orchestra since August 2005, has been named director of the MIT Symphony Orchestra (MITSO), the Music and Theater Arts Office at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has announced.

Selected by a search committee comprised of faculty members from MIT's Music and Theater Arts Section who worked closely with student representatives, Boyle impressed the committee with his wide background in orchestral, chamber and choral music, demonstrating "a breadth of experience new to orchestral conducting at MIT," according to committee member, John Harbison, Institute Professor of Music.

"We were particularly happy to hear from his colleagues in Texas [University of Texas at Austin], one of the finest university programs, that he had been an inspiring leader in their orchestral program," said Harbison. "Although he was among the youngest of the candidates, we were very impressed by his personal maturity."

Boyles earned a Bachelor of Music degree in voice from Indiana University in 2001, where he worked with such conductors as David Effron, Vance George, Imre Pallo, Robert Porco, and Erich Kunzel. As a Master's student at the University of Arizona, Boyles studied under Dr. Thomas Cockrell, and helped form the school's second orchestra, the UA Philharmonic, which he conducted and managed in its first two years. He received his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Texas at Austin in December 2005.

Boyles made his New York debut with the Manhattan School of Music Orchestra in the 2004 Kurt Masur Conducting Seminar, and was invited for a return appearance in April 2005. He has participated in the Oregon Bach Festival, conducting and studying with Helmuth Rilling, and has guest conducted with the Muncie Symphony Orchestra, Austin Chamber Ensemble, Audio Inversions, and the University of Arizona Opera Theater. As Staff Conductor at Opera in the Ozarks for two summers, he led performances of "Into the Woods," and "Carmen," and assisted with other productions. Boyles has also held instructor positions at the University of Texas at Austin, and the University of Arizona.

An experienced singer, Boyles performed in numerous operas with the Indiana University Opera Theater, and as a chorister in Arizona Opera's first complete presentation of Wagner's "Der Ring des Nibelungen."

Boyles said he was "honored and blessed" to receive the appointment, and hoped to "build upon the excellence" of MITSO's reputation and "expand the range and variety of repertoire."  He also expressed excitement at the opportunity to experience the "rich culture and high-quality music making" of the Boston area and to become part of the city's artistic fabric.

Founded in 1884, MITSO is a full-size orchestra, comprised of MIT and Wellesley students who have been accepted through an audition process. From J.S. Bach to MIT's Institute Professor John Harbison, MITSO performs a broad range of challenging repertoire in four concerts per academic year in MIT's 1,200-seat Kresge Auditorium. Student and professional soloists are sometimes featured, as are MIT student compositions. Boyles succeeds Dante Anzolini, who served as MITSO's conductor from 1999-2006. Paul Biss is interim conductor for the 2006-07 season.

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