Medium Bio

“Generous” is the word listeners and performers use time and again to describe conductor Jed Gaylin’s approach to the orchestra, the score, and the audience. His joyful abandon and probing intellect join together in powerful programs, compelling interpretations, and evenings that are fresh and exuberant. George Szell said, “In music one must think with the heart and feel with the mind,” a maxim Jed Gaylin embodies abundantly and passionately.

Orchestra members throughout the world, soloists, and opera singers often recount how Jed Gaylin’s rehearsals and performances elicit their very best, not only individually but collectively. He seeks connections not only within a piece, but also between seemingly disparate and wide-ranging works to  sculpt a concert of surprising, captivating juxtapositions. His dedication to exploring the music’s fullest potential in a collaborative spirit reaches beyond the stage to draw the audience into the creative act. Listeners feel far more than just welcomed by words from the podium—they feel engaged as participants in a wordless musical conversation that is spontaneous, big-hearted, and eloquent.

As Music Director, Jed Gaylin leads the Bay Atlantic Symphony, Hopkins Symphony Orchestra, and Two Rivers Chamber Orchestra with the same creative depth and an open spirit that he brings to the podium. The Bay Atlantic Symphony is now not only consistently praised for its astonishing level of artistry and precision, it is also viewed throughout New Jersey as a model for how professional orchestras can become a vital focus and source of identity in their communities. As a sought-after creative partner throughout the region, the Bay Atlantic Symphony has forged residencies with area colleges, numerous towns, music festivals such as Cape May, and even casinos. Atlantic City’s Borgata has hosted the Symphony for an all-classical summer series, begun in 2013. In 2012, Jed Gaylin was named Artist in Residence at Stockton University. The Symphony’s ongoing Orchestra-in-Residence position is part of an innovative model in which Bay-Atlantic Symphony is integrated into the music curriculum. Also in 2012, he was named Music Director of the Two Rivers Chamber Orchestra, in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.

In 2018, Mr. Gaylin was tapped by Eastman School of Music composer Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez to conduct his Alla Balena Ensemble, a group of virtuosi from throughout the US. ABE has performed at Eastman’s Kilbourn Hall, The Mexican Cultural Institute (Washington, DC), and Teatro Degollado in Guadalajara. Mr. Gaylin has commissioned and performed numerous works by Sanchez-Gutierrez for more than 30 years.

Mr. Gaylin served as the Director of Orchestras at the International Music Festival and Summer Course of Cervera (Spain) and was a regular conductor at Opera Vivente in Baltimore. His numerous guest appearances include St. Petersburg State Symphony, National Film and Radio Philharmonic (Beijing, China), Shanghai Conservatory Orchestra, Bucharest Radio Orchestra, Academia del Gran Teatre del Liceu (Barcelona, Spain), Eastman School Music Broadband Ensemble, among many others. He has performed with such soloists as Hilary Hahn, Yuja Wang, Eugenia Zukerman, Shai Wosner, and Stefan Jackiw.

Jed Gaylin’s television and radio broadcasts include National Public Radio’s Weekend Edition, Voice of America, Bucharest Radio Orchestra, and the National Radio and Film Philharmonic (Beijing). He has been aired repeatedly in the US on WWFM in New Jersey and WJBC in Baltimore.

Mr. Gaylin earned both a Bachelor of Music in piano and a Master of Music in conducting at the Oberlin Conservatory, and a Doctor of Musical Arts in conducting at the Peabody Conservatory. He attended the Aspen Music Festival as a Conducting Fellow. Among other honors, he has received a National Endowment for the Arts grant and the Presser Music Award. His conducting teachers have included Frederik Prausnitz, Leonard Slatkin, Jahja Ling, Murry Sidlin, Paul Vermel, and Michel Singher, and, for piano, Lydia Frumkin.

Find out more about Jed Gaylin at jedgaylin.com.