At the age of 36, he becomes the youngest permanent conductor at the head of the Opera Orchestra, and will take up his duties in September 2024.
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The Orchestra of the National Opera of Montpellier announced on Tuesday, April 23, the appointment of American conductor Roderick Cox as music director, succeeding Dane Michael Schonwandt, who held the position between 2015 and 2023. “This young American conductor of great talent will brilliantly accompany us (…) towards one of our great goals: to make Montpellier one of the European capitals of music”, the president of the Opera Orchestra, Bernard Serrou, rejoiced.
Roderick Cox said to himself “a deep honor“AND “Determined to perpetuate the legacy of artistic excellence that characterizes this institution, using the transformative power of music to chart bold new paths, diversifying our programs and developing new audiences,” in the press release on his appointment.
Integration of the African American repertoire
At the age of 36, Roderick Cox becomes the youngest permanent conductor at the head of the Opera orchestra. This is also the first time he has become music director of a national orchestra, following acclaimed engagements with the Boston Symphony Orchestra or the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, among others. An African-American, originally from Georgia, in the United States of America, in 2019, in parallel with his conducting activities, he launched the Roderick Cox Music Initiative: a training program for financial assistance to young black-American musicians.
He also advocates greater integration of African-American repertoire into conservatory or university training. Roderick Cox specially designed the program “Song of America: A Celebration of Black Music” at the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg. “His artistic standards and his commitment to diversifying audiences” they were also greeted by the mayor of Montpellier, Michaël Delafosse.
Roderick Cox will take up his duties in September 2024, before the opening of the Opera Orchestra’s operatic season at the end of the month with three performances The force of fate by Verdi.
