Oakland Symphony 2024: New director launches new future for orchestra
Kedrick Armstrong has only been music director of the Oakland Symphony for six months, but he's already accomplished a lot.
The 30-year-old conductor, who in April succeeded the late Michael Morgan as the Symphony's music director and artistic leader, has already put his stamp on the organization with creative energy and impressive drive.
And as he prepares to make his official debut with the Symphony on Oct. 18 in Oakland's Paramount Theatre, he says he can't wait to welcome audiences back to an organization that has weathered its share of troubles.
"It's been a whirlwind," Armstrong said in a recent interview. Still, the conductor, who also serves as Creative Partner and Principal Conductor of Illinois' Knox-Galesburg Symphony, and has made recent appearances with Lyric Opera of Chicago and Opera Theater of St. Louis, says that he's feeling great about the job – and looking forward to his season-opening program.
Titled "Inextinguishable Oakland!," it welcomes guests Allison Miller, John Santos, and Meklit, celebrates the 40-year anniversary of Living Jazz, features a short orchestral work by Julia Perry, and caps the evening with Carl Nielsen's Symphony No. 4, "The Inextinguishable."
Armstrong will conduct five subsequent programs in the 24-25 season, including "Two Black Churches," with works by Shawn Okpebholo and Carl Orff (Nov. 8); "A Tribute to the Legends of Disco" (Dec. 15); "Forgiveness + Pictures at an Exhibition," with works by Gabriela Lena Frank, Modest Mussorgsky, and Daniel Bernard Roumain (March 28, 2025); "Paul Robeson: Here I Stand," with works by Brahms, Jasmine Barnes, and Carlos Simon (May 16, 2025); and the season finale, featuring Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 and "Mighty River" by Errollyn Wallen (June 13, 2025).
Armstrong recalled that, on his first visit to the Oakland Symphony in 2022, he knew that this was his dream job, even as he knew it was going to be a challenge.
"There's a deep level of care for the arts," he said of the organization, "but there's also a lot of work to be done — for space, for funding, to connect with our communities. But I have youth on my side. "I'm standing on the shoulders of Calvin Simmons and Michael Morgan."
Indeed, both Simmons and Morgan were exemplary leaders during their tenures with the Symphony. Armstrong considers Morgan, who died in 2021 after a 30-year tenure with the Symphony, one of his all-time heroes; Like Morgan, whose programs in Oakland were often groundbreaking, Armstrong enjoys a wide range of repertoire, from early music to new works.
Born and raised in South Carolina, Armstrong grew up in a family of athletes. "My love of music is still a great mystery," he said with a laugh. He recalls his first musical experiences, in church; a little later, someone gave him a toy piano. "I couldn't play something but about producing sound was so exciting," he says – a feeling that he believes contributed to his work as a conductor. He studied piano, then switched to clarinet, eventually "working my way through all of the instruments in the band room."
His first conducting assignment was in 8th grade; I have loved putting groups together. Eventually, he says, "I was able to put a name to it – that you could pursue a career in this. By the time I got to college, I wanted to be a driver."
Morgan was a major influence: Armstrong met him in 2017 as part of a Chicago fellowship. "I got to assist him," he recalls. "He was the first professional Black driver I'd ever met. Seeing him work really changed my path."
Today, Armstrong says that Morgan left an indelible legacy in Oakland. "The work's been done," he says, "the foundation is great." And he's clearly at home at the orchestra that bears the city's name.
"Oakland's such a beautiful place to be," he said. "Yes, there are gloom and doom narratives. Yes, Oakland has issues like every city in America.
"But its amount of love and care and beauty and tenacity inspire me to shine all the love and care and talent we can offer. The audience here shows its enthusiasm like no other. Really, I'm so excited to get started."
OAKLAND SYMPHONY
When:
Where: Paramount Theatre, 2025 Broadway, Oakland
Tickets: Season subscriptions $96-$354, single tickets $25-$90; oaklandsymphony.org
