Christian Reif Appointed Inaugural Music Director of the Lakes Area Music Festival of Minnesota

Christian Reif leading the Lakes Area Music Festival musicians in a 2018 performance of Mahler 4 (Photo Credit: David Boran)

For Immediate Release

CHRISTIAN REIF APPOINTED INAUGURAL MUSIC DIRECTOR OF THE LAKES AREA MUSIC FESTIVAL OF MINNESOTA

BRAINERD, Minn. (May 5, 2021) – Christian Reif has been named the inaugural Music Director of the Lakes Area Music Festival of Minnesota. The appointment takes effect immediately.

Artistic and Executive Director Scott Lykins said: “We are pleased to welcome such a distinguished conductor in Christian Reif to be our first Music Director and to have this creative new voice as part of the artistic leadership of the Lakes Area Music Festival. Christian’s history with the festival, his well-earned reputation for excellence, and his international perspective make him an incredible asset for LAMF’s future. The rapport between Christian and our roster of musicians creates an inspiring atmosphere for music-making which is apparent both to those on stage and in the audience. His vision is already evident in the programming for our upcoming season and will continue to enrich our mission for years to come.”

Christian Reif said: “I’m thrilled to start a more in-depth relationship with the Lakes Area Music Festival family! The summers I’ve spent with the wonderful musicians and community in and around Brainerd have already been highlights in my music-making life and have been lots of fun. One thing that I’ve always felt strongly about this festival is that the community is not just built around music, but that music is here to build community. I’m really looking forward to engaging in meaningful and inspiring interactions in the years to come.”

German conductor Christian Reif has quickly established a name for himself internationally as a fast-rising talent. Former Resident Conductor of the San Francisco Symphony and Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra, Reif has conducted the Orchestre National d’île de France, Stavanger Symphony, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Ulster Orchestra, Aalborg Symphony, Orchestre National de Belgique, Orquestra Sinfonica Portuguese, Fundación Excelentia Madrid, Romanian Radio Symphony, Dallas Symphony and San Francisco Symphony. San Francisco Chronicle has written: “Reif is a remarkable talent ... a conductor of considerable stature ... a significant musical artist.”

In the 2016, 2017 and 2018 seasons, Christian Reif conducted the festival’s finale performances each season, becoming a popular addition to the roster in the eyes of artists and audiences alike. In his new role as Music Director, he will return to lead six orchestral programs plus a production of Igor Stravinsky’s The Rake’s Progress in the 2021 season.

The 2021 season of the Lakes Area Music Festival will feature live performances for limited-in-size audiences, as well as live-streaming options for audiences to enjoy at home. Chamber music and orchestral programs will feature works by living American composers Mason Bates, Jessie Montgomery, Valerie Coleman, Caroline Shaw and a world-premiere by Jimmy López Bellido. Orchestral standards will include symphonies by Dvorak, Mozart, Prokofiev, Sibelius, and lesser-known works such as the Polish composer Grażyna Bacewicz’s Concerto for Strings. LAMF’s production of Stravinsky’s The Rake’s Progress will feature Metropolitan Opera performers tenor Miles Mykkanen (Tom Rakewell) and soprano Brandie Sutton (Anne Trulove). Returning soloists to perform with the LAMF orchestra include Tchaikovsky competition winner violinist Itamar Zorman and international piano soloist Tanya Gabrielian.

The LAMF 2021 season will mark the first season in a brand new performing arts venue in downtown Brainerd. On April 10, 2018, voters in the Brainerd Public School district approved a $145.8 million bond referendum including an enhanced, state-of-the-art performing arts center of which LAMF will be a primary tenant. The center boasts an expansive lobby; 1,200-seat auditorium with main floor and balcony seating; concert and theater stage configurations; orchestra pit for over 70 musicians; advanced lighting, sound, and other technical elements; a multipurpose atrium for smaller events; and backstage amenities for performers.

ABOUT CHRISTIAN REIF

Christian Reif has conducted the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Dallas Symphony, Ulster Orchestra, Romanian Radio Symphony, Aalborg Symphony, Fundación Excelentia in Madrid, North Carolina Symphony, San Antonio Symphony, Santa Barbara Symphony, Toledo Symphony, Colorado Springs Philharmonic, Orchestre National de Belgique and Orquestra Sinfonica Portuguese in Lisbon. Most recently, he conducted the Stavanger Symphony in a program of Tchaikovsky Romeo and Juliet and Shostakovich Symphony No. 1 paired with Barber’s Knoxville: Summer of 1915 with soprano Julia Bullock, and made his debut in March 2021 with the Orchestre National d’île de France in a streamed performance of Stravinsky’s Apollon Musagète.

His 2021/22 engagements include appearances with the Hallé Orchestra, Gävle Symphony, Orchestre National de Lyon, Odense Symphony, Munich Radio Orchestra, Brno Philharmonic, Baltimore Symphony, New World Symphony and Kansas City Symphony.

Reif was a Conducting Fellow with the New World Symphony from 2014-2016 and a Conducting Fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center in the summers of 2015 and 2016. He studied with Alan Gilbert at the Juilliard School, where he completed his Master of Music in Conducting in 2014 and received the Charles Schiff Conducting Award. Prior to that, Reif studied with Dennis Russell Davies at the Mozarteum Salzburg, where he received a diploma in 2012. He is winner of the 2015 German Operetta Prize, awarded by the German Music Council, and two Kulturförderpreise awards given to promising artists of the region who promote cultural advancement in their communities.

ABOUT LAKES AREA MUSIC FESTIVAL

The Lakes Area Music Festival of Minnesota is one of the fastest growing summer music festivals in the nation, drawing 200 artists from the nation’s best orchestras and opera companies each season. For nearly a month, chamber music, orchestra, opera, and ballet are produced in downtown Brainerd – the heart of Minnesota’s Lakes Country. Each performance is offered with free of charge, donation-based admission in a commitment to make world-class art accessible to all. For more information, visit www.lakesareamusic.org.