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 Maestro Zimmermann begins his 26th
year and Music Director and
Conductor of the Canton Symphony
Orchestra. Zimmermann’s energetic
and vibrant performances have drawn
invitations to appear on the podium
with the Cleveland, Chicago,
National, Pittsburgh, Atlanta, New
Jersey, Syracuse, Rochester and San
Antonio orchestras. Other guest
appearances include the Warsaw
Philharmonic, the Orchestre
Symphonique de Paris, the Toronto
Symphony, the Calgary Philharmonic,
Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra,
Chicago’s Grant Park, Colorado
Philharmonic and the Cleveland
Opera.
In 2006, Zimmermann was named
Director of Orchestral Activities at
the University of Texas, Austin. And
after serving 21 years as Music
Director/Conductor of the North
Carolina Symphony, he is currently
Conductor Laureate of that
orchestra. This past summer, he
returned to the Breckenridge Music
Festival for his 13th season as
Music Director and Principal
Conductor. After his debut with the
Colorado Philharmonic in 2003, the
Denver Post said “…one would be hard
pressed to recall a better account
of Edward Elgar’s ‘Enigma’
Variations. Zimmermann, though with
a score on the music desk before the
podium never opened it, and led the
orchestra with command and sure
concert. It was masterful, the
orchestra responding with sonorous
clarity.” And the Rocky Mountain
News read: “Zimmermann and company
created an exquisite reading of
Elgar’s ‘Enigma’ Variations… the
conductor, working from memory, made
every note count. His control over
the proceedings was complete, and
the orchestra responded with some of
its finest playing of the season.”
With headlines such as: “Zimmermann
the Spark that ignites Grant Park
Symphony”, “Canton Symphony steams
up night”, “LPO (Louisiana
Philharmonic) delivers drama with
flair….”, and “Orchestra (Canton
Symphony) gives impassioned Ninth
Symphony (Mahler)”, Zimmermann
consistently receives accolades from
critics and audiences alike. He has
recorded with the Warsaw
Philharmonic, the Louisville
Orchestra and the North Carolina
Symphony on the MMA, Louisville, and
Koch labels. Zimmermann has also
appeared as a guest on Breakfast
with the Arts, a weekly program on
the Arts and Education Network.
As comfortable with opera as on the
concert stage, the Maestro has
conducted staged works of Mozart,
Verdi, Strauss Jr., Puccini and
Gershwin and made his debut with the
Cleveland Opera this past February
2006, conducting Gounod’s Roméo et
Juliette. The Cleveland Plain Dealer
remarked that “Zimmermann…went on to
lead a warm, vivid reading… The
orchestra responded with a keen
blend of ensemble finesse and solo
suavity”. The Akron Beacon Journal
added “I’ve rarely heard the
orchestra sound so full or play more
expressively than under Zimmermann”.
American born, Mr. Zimmermann lives
in Raleigh, North Carolina with his
wife Sharon. They have two children,
Anna Marie and Peter Karl Irum.
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