David Amado, Music Director
The Delaware Symphony Orchestra thrives under the direction of one of the country's most talented young conductors.--Southern Living
Philadelphia native David Amado has been praised by the media, audiences and fellow musicians for his deep insight and visceral energy. These qualities have allowed Maestro Amado to reinvigorate the Delaware Symphony Orchestra, turning it into a premier regional orchestra during his short tenure. His innovative programming, his approachable demeanor and his natural and instinctive music-making make him a formidable musical presence. In the 2009-10 season he will guest conduct the orchestras of Eugene, Oregon and Bangor, Maine, as well as leading the Chicago and National symphony orchestras in performances with the Magic Circle Mime Co.
Descended from a long line of fine musicians including his grandmother, violist Lillian Fuchs, and great-uncle, violinist Joseph Fuchs, David Amado continues his family’s tradition of making great music. He showed a predilection for music at a very early age, beginning piano lessons at age four. But it was not until his high school years that he became dedicated to a musical career, thanks to the galvanizing force of his teachers and peers in the Pre-College Division of Juilliard. David continued his college years at Juilliard, studying piano with Herbert Stessin while simultaneously exploring other facets of music, including the world of the orchestra.
Maestro Amado’s fascination with the orchestra led him to Indiana University, where he received his Master’s in Instrumental Conducting. After graduating he returned to New York to study again at Juilliard, but this time as a conductor with Otto-Werner Mueller. The following three years both reignited David’s dedication to musical excellence and groomed him for entry into the professional world.
David’s first job was an apprenticeship with the Oregon Symphony, followed by a six-year tenure with the Saint Louis Symphony in Missouri. While in Saint Louis, David was both the Music Director of the Saint Louis Symphony Youth Orchestra and staff conductor for the Saint Louis Symphony. David greatly expanded the types and number of concerts offered to young people, introducing symphonic music to 55,000 young people annually. In addition to his conducting duties, David was a producer for Arch Media, the Symphony’s own record label.
Maestro Amado is a prominent leader of the Delaware arts community. His unique and appealing programming, which blends familiar orchestral repertoire with modern pieces, has propelled the DSO to new artistic heights. With his disarming and accessible demeanor as well as his innate teaching ability, David draws new audiences to the concert hall. Last season he introduced the Concert & Conversation series, presenting masterworks from the classical canon interspersed with musical analysis and anecdotal information from the conductor’s perspective.
Maestro Amado continues to be an enduringly popular figure in Saint Louis where he was the Associate Conductor of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) from 2001–2004. In November 2008, he conducted the Virginia Symphony in a program including Holst’s Planets. Other recent highlights of his career include engagements with the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Saint Louis Symphony, the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, the Houston Symphony, the New World Symphony, the Milwaukee Symphony, the Rochester Philharmonic and the Detroit Symphony.
In addition to his concert schedule, David can be heard regularly on NPR affiliate WHYY and WVUD radio. He has also been heard nationally on NPR’s Performance Today and Dial-a-musician. Maestro Amado lives in Wilmington with his wife, violinist Meredith Amado, and their three children.
