The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, which has recruited top conductors such as Fritz Rainer and Leopold Stokowski, announced on the 11th that it had appointed Christian Masellaru, a Romanian maestro who has contributed to music education, as its next music director.
Masellaru, 44, will begin a four-year term at Cincinnati beginning with the 2025-26 season and will take on the role of music director in September, the ensemble said. Masellaru, who holds prestigious positions in Europe as leader of the Orchester National de France and the WDR Sinfoni Orchestra of Cologne, Germany, succeeds veteran conductor Louis Langrès, who has been leader of the ensembles since 2013.
Macelaru said he felt the potential in the orchestra and the community.
“This was the orchestra I really wanted to be with in the U.S.,” he said in a phone interview from China, where he was touring with the WDR Sinfoni Orchestra.
Macelaru has often spoken about making classical music accessible to a wider audience and said he hopes to help expand music education efforts in Cincinnati.
“It’s very disappointing to see so many orchestras and colleagues who think the music should speak for itself,” he said. “We need to let people know why this music is so beautiful and how they can discover more beauty. I've been doing this my whole life. And now I feel like I have a clearer, more visible platform to spread this message.”
Jonathan Martin, president and chief executive officer of the Cincinnati Symphony, said in an interview that orchestra leaders admired Masellaru's conducting talent as well as his desire to help expand the orchestra's presence in the community. He said he was very impressed.
“He has a unique ability to harness the power of music to reach audiences,” Martin said. “He understands that the orchestras of American society have the power to serve them much better than they have in the past.”
Like many orchestras, the Cincinnati Symphony is working to overcome the challenges posed by the pandemic. Concert attendance is still below pre-pandemic levels, at about 66% this season compared to 78% in the 2018-19 season, but is gradually increasing. Subscribers have declined, following a national trend. There are 3,901 subscribers this season, compared to 5,380 in the 2018-19 season.
But the orchestra, founded in 1895, has a robust endowment worth about $358 million, a relative sum for larger ensembles, and has many other advantages. It grew from about $31 million in 2018-19 to about $38 million this season.
Maselaru was born in Timisoara, Romania, the youngest of 10 children, and grew up playing the violin. His father worked in a factory, but conducted a local church orchestra on the side. He made sure all his children practiced their instruments every day.
At age 17, Macelaru came to the United States to enroll at the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan. Early in his career he focused on the violin. He was concertmaster of the Miami Symphony Orchestra and performed with the Houston Symphony Orchestra.
But he was drawn to conducting, and in 2011 he became assistant conductor in Philadelphia. Soon he was at the top. He began his tenure in Cologne in 2019 and with the Orchester National de France the following year.
Masellaru, who became a U.S. citizen in 2019, plans to split his time between Paris and Cincinnati. His term at the WDR Sinfonieorchester ends next year.
He said he admires the versatility of the musicians and will work to improve the sound of the Cincinnati Symphony.
“They wear so many hats when they perform in opera or ballet or pop or symphonic repertoire,” he said. “My next challenge with them is to create a palette of sounds.”