British conductor Bramwell Tovey, 68, has been named Music Director of the Sarasota Orchestra in Florida. Tovey, who was already scheduled to lead concerts in April 2022, begins his role as Music Director designate Sept. 1, prior to assuming the title of Music Director in the fall of 2022 for the following four seasons.
Tovey is also principal conductor of the BBC Concert Orchestra, artistic advisor to the Rhode Island Philharmonic and Principal Guest Conductor of Orchestre Symphonique de Québec.
Tovey served for 18 years as Music Director of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. In Vancouver, his leadership resulted in the creation of the VSO School of Music, housed within the Tovey Centre for Music, named in his honor in 2018. From 1989 to 2000 Bramwell Tovey was Music Director of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, from 2001 to 2006 he was Chief Conductor of Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg,
From 2019 to 2020 he was Artistic Director of Calgary Opera. For the academic years 2017 to 2019 he was also Associate Professor of Music on faculty at Boston University leading the Orchestra and Conducting programs. In 2019 he had to cancel several concerts over a cancer treatment.