Biography
David Lockington
Over the past twenty-five years, David Lockington has developed an impressive conducting career in the United States. A native of Great Britain, he has served as the Music Director of the Grand Rapids Symphony Orchestra since January 1999 and was appointed to the position of Music Director of the Modesto Symphony in May 2007.
Since his arrival to the United States in 1978, Mr. Lockington has held numerous positions with American orchestras, including serving as Assistant Conductor with the Denver Symphony Orchestra and Opera Colorado and Assistant and Associate Conductor of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. In May 1993 he accepted the position of Music Director of the Ohio Chamber Orchestra, assumed the title of Music Director of the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra in September 1995 and was Music Director of the Long Island Philharmonic for the 96/97 through 99/2000 seasons.
Mr. Lockington's guest conducting engagements include appearances with the Saint Louis, Houston, Detroit, Seattle, Toronto, Vancouver, Colorado, Oregon, Phoenix and Columbus (OH) symphonies; the Buffalo, Rochester and Louisiana Philharmonics; and the Orchestra of St. Luke's at Carnegie Hall. Internationally, he has conducted the China Broadcasting Symphony Orchestra in Beijing and Taiwan, led the English Chamber Orchestra on a tour in Asia and appeared with the Orquesta Sinfonica del Principado de Asturias in Spain and the Northern Sinfonia in Great Britain.
Recent and upcoming guest conducting engagements include first appearances with the Utah, Edmonton, Syracuse and Alabama symphonies as well as return engagements with the Indianapolis, Vancouver, Pacific, Nashville, San Diego and Kansas City symphonies, Louisville Orchestra, National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa and the Calgary Philharmonic. Mr. Lockington's summer festival activities include conducting appearances at the Grand Teton, San Luis Obispo Mozart, Interlochen, Chautauqua and Eastern Music festivals.
In May 2005, in celebration of the orchestra's 75th anniversary, David Lockington led the Grand Rapids Symphony in a program of works by Dvorak, Goldmark and Copland at New York's Carnegie Hall.
David Lockington began his career as a cellist and was the Principal with the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain for two years. After completing his Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of Cambridge, Mr. Lockington came to the United States on a scholarship to Yale University where he received his Master's degree in cello performance and studied conducting with Otto Werner Mueller. He was a member of the New Haven Symphony Orchestra and served as assistant principal cellist for three years with the Denver Symphony Orchestra before turning to conducting.