The Colburn School, Los Angeles’ prestigious music and dance conservatory, has received a $16.6 million donation from the Negaunee Foundation to permanently fund the Negaunee Conducting Program.
The program will be led by acclaimed composer and conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen, the outgoing music director of the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra who holds the Maestro Ernst H. Katz Chair in Conducting Studies at the Colburn Institute. The donation is the largest the Illinois-based foundation has ever made to a California institution.
“The Colburn School is honored to receive this groundbreaking $16.6 million donation,” said Sel Kardan, Colburn President and CEO. “(The Negaunee Conducting Program) ensures that aspiring conductors receive exceptional training and mentoring, both academically and through real-world experiences.”
Launched in 2018, the program enables a small group of students, known as Salonen Fellows, to hone their craft and prepare for careers on the world’s most prestigious stages under Salonen’s leadership. Mert Yalniz, a Turkish-German conductor, pianist and composer, has been selected as a fellow for 2024-2025, joining current fellow Aleksandra Melaniuk.
In the coming season, the scholarship holders will work with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestre de Paris and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, among others. They have also worked with the New York Philharmonic, the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra, the London Philharmonia Orchestra, the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Berlin Philharmonic.
“For generations, artists and artisans have learned through apprenticeships, dedicating years to their craft to learn through direct experience and mentoring,” Salonen said. “In doing so, they become part of a lineage of masters, each with their own school of thought and repertoire of techniques. These different artistic lineages, in turn, provide a diversity of expression and thus the assurance that their field is in a constant state of living development. The conservatory is one of the few places where this kind of artistic mentoring is still possible, and it was something that absolutely shaped me in my youth and continues to guide me today.”
Colburn will also be home to Salonen’s extensive score collection, which includes more than 1,400 annotated orchestral scores from his career, including works by contemporary composers and his original compositions.
On campus, fellows study directly with Salonen and serve as preparatory conductors for the Colburn Orchestra, the Conservatory’s flagship ensemble. They also conduct and curate programs for the Zipper Outreach Orchestra, Colburn’s ensemble for its community outreach activities, and Concerto Forum, an annual public concert featuring Conservatory soloists. Following the Colburn Conservatory model, fellows receive full scholarships to cover tuition, room, and board.
Yalniz and Melaniuk – the latter will appear in the Colburn Orchestra’s season opening program on September 28, conducting Richard Wagner’s Prelude to Tristan and Isolde — are also members of the SF Symphony’s conducting staff. The two are also on the roster of Colburn Artists, a unique internal management program for Colburn students who are on the verge of professional careers.
