Rossen Milanov, Misic Director

"...one who bears watching by anyone who
cares about the future of music."
Chicago Tribune

Named as Artistic Director of The Philadelphia Orchestra at The Mann Center for the Performing Arts in March 2006, he also serves as Music Director of the New Symphony Orchestra in his native city of Sofia, Bulgaria; Music Director of Princeton Symphony Orchestra and as Music Director of New Jersey’s Symphony In C. Current season highlights include debuts with Singapore Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestra of Komische Oper, Berlin, New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, Charlotte Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra of the Royal Swedish Opera (with a ballet triple-bill), and he makes his Carnegie Hall debut with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s. Re-invitations include both Seattle Symphony and Seoul Philharmonic Orchestras. In the USA Mr. Milanov has led concerts at the Aspen Music Festival, the Baltimore Symphony, the Indianapolis Symphony, the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and Grand Teton Festival. Internationally he has worked with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, NHK Symphony Orchestra, the Australian Youth Orchestra, the Lucerne Symphony, the Residentie Orchester, the Rotterdam Philharmonic, and Orchestre de la Suisse Romande in a new production of Le sacre du Printemps and Petrushka danced by the ballet of the Grande Theatre du Geneve. With The Philadelphia Orchestra, Mr. Milanov’s recent highlights have included critically acclaimed concerts at the orchestra’s summer series at Mann Center, at the Bravo! Vale Valley Music Festival, and in subscription concerts at Kimmel Center, including performances of Adams’s Violin Concerto with Leila Josefowicz, Saint-Saëns Cello Concerto with Yo-Yo Ma, Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 15, and the world premiere of Nicholas Maw’s English Horn Concerto commissioned by the orchestra for Elizabeth Starr Masoudnia. Rossen Milanov has conducted Argento’s Postcard from Morocco, and most recently Tchaikovsky’s Iolanta, both with the Curtis Institute; and last summer’s concert performances of La boheme with the Philadelphia Orchestra both at Mann Center and at Bravo! were received with critical acclaim. He has worked with the legendary Bulgarian bass Nikolai Ghiaurov, and last season, as Chief Conductor of the Bulgarian National Radio Orchestra, led the orchestra in a European tour featuring Bulgarian mezzo-soprano Vesselina Kasarova. His recording of works by the Russian composer Alla Pavlova with the Moscow Philharmonic is available on the Naxos label; and a live performance of Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 15 is available online though Philadelphia Online. Mr. Milanov studied conducting at the Juilliard School (where he received the Bruno Walter Memorial Scholarship), the Curtis Institute of Music, Duquesne University, and the Bulgarian National Academy of Music. He has received the Award for Extraordinary Contribution to Bulgarian Culture, awarded by the Bulgarian Ministry of Culture, and in 2005 was chosen as Bulgaria’s Musician of the Year.

Petko Dimitrov, Principal Guest Conductor

PETKO DIMITROV is Principal Guest Conductor of New Symphony Orchestra. He is also Assistant Conductor of Symphony in C, New Jersey, Music Director of the Ridgefield Symphony Youth Orchestra and Assistant Conductor of the Ridgefield Symphony, Connecticut. He entered the State Academy of Music Sofia in 1993 and later graduated with a Bachelor Degree in Music Pedagogy. During this time, he studied orchestra conducting with Ivan Bakalov, Vassil Kazandjiev and Rossen Milanov. Dimitrov made his debut as a conductor with The New Symphony Orchestra, Sofia, Bulgaria, in May 1998, performing a concert of British music by Sir Michael Tippet and Henry Purcell, in collaboration with The British Council. Since then he has been an Assistant Conductor and Principal Guest Conductor of the Orchestra and has performed subscription concerts, as well as commissions regularly. Since 2001 Dimitrov has been studying and working in the United States. In 2004 he completed his Masters Degree in Orchestra Conducting at the University of Michigan, under the direction of Kenneth Kiesler. During his time in Michigan, he performed concerts with the University of Michigan Symphony Orchestra, Campus Philharmonia Orchestra and Campus Symphony Orchestra. In 2006 he finished his studies with Gustav Meier at the Peabody Conservatory, pursuing a Graduate Performance Diploma in Orchestral Conducting. For season 2007/2008 Petko was a winner of the Bruno Walter Memorial Foundation Award for Assistant Conductor Chair.
In January 2010 Petko Dimitrov conducted The Celtic Rock Opera Excalibur in Zurich and in twelve of the biggest cities in Germany, in front of more than 100 thousand spectators.