Dean Williamson, one of the country’s foremost emerging opera conductors, was until 2002 music director of the Seattle Opera Young Artists Program.  He has led all of the program’s productions, including Cosi fan tutte, Le nozze di Figaro, Don Giovanni, La Cenerentola, and La bohème.

In 2001, he was asked to conduct a new production of Lucia at the Minnesota Opera.  His success there led to numerous other invitations and in 2002 he made his debut at the Wolf Trap Opera with Don Pasquale.

The 2003 season included La bohéme at the Seattle Opera Young Artists Program and Washington East Opera, Don Giovanni at the Opera Colorado and Spokane Opera companies, Carmen at Rimrock Opera, and La finta giardiniera at Ohio University.  That summer, he conducted Eugene Onegin at the Opera Festival of New Jersey, and returned to Wolf Trap to lead the Filene Center production of Il barbiere di Siviglia.  In the fall of 2003, he was a visiting guest professor at the University of Southern California’s Thornton School of Music, teaching in the opera program and conducting Hansel and Gretel.

Engagements in 2004 included Carmen at the Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Sondheim’s Passion at Minnesota Opera, Don Pasquale at the San Francisco Opera’s Merola program, Cosi fan tutte at the Seattle Opera Young Artists Program and L’Italiana in Algeri at Boston Lyric Opera.

In 2005 he led Le nozze di Figaro at the Seattle Opera Young Artists Program and made his main stage Seattle Opera debut with a new production of Les Contes d’Hoffmann, receiving much praise in the international press.  In the summer he conducted Madama Butterfly at the Chautauqua Opera and La Cenerentola at Wolf Trap in the Filene Center.  This fall he makes his Canadian debut with La bohéme at the Manitoba Opera.

In 2006 he returns to Spokane Opera for the New Year’s Eve gala, then conducts Il barbiere di Siviglia at the Washington East Opera.  In February, he makes his Kentucky Opera debut with another production of Il barbiere di Siviglia, then comes back to the Seattle Opera YAP to lead The Turn of the Screw.  In the spring and summer he returns to the Opera Theatre of St. Louis for Il barbiere di Siviglia, opening the season there.  In the fall he conducts Die Zauberflöte at Opera Colorado.

Acclaimed by London’s Opera as a virtuoso at the keyboard, he was for twelve years principal coach and pianist for the Seattle Opera.  Mr. Williamson has also performed throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe as accompanist with some of the world’s leading singers.

Deeply committed to teaching, he has given masterclasses at universities around the country, and has served on the judging panels of many competitions and scholarship auditions, including the Metropolitan National Council. 

 
Dean Williamson, Conductor