Conference 2026: Annual Meeting and Closing Luncheon

Speaker(s): Lara Downes, Pianist and NPR Host; David Hyslop, Arts Consultant; Alan Mason, Board Chair, League of American Orchestras; Melissa Ngan, President and CEO, American Composers Orchestra; Arturo O’Farrill, Jazz Musician and Composer; Curtis Stewart, Artistic Director, American Composers Orchestra; Jennifer Teisinger, Executive Director, South Dakota Symphony Orchestra; and Simon Woods, President and CEO, League of American Orchestras

During the Closing Luncheon, we held the League’s Annual Meeting and presented the Gold Baton award to David Hyslop for nearly seven decades in leadership roles throughout the orchestra field, including his unprecedented service as interim CEO at 14 orchestras around the country of all budget sizes. Hyslop was CEO of the Minnesota Orchestra (1991-2003), the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (1978-1991), and the Oregon Symphony (1972-1978). During the Annual Meeting, members also elected the people who represent the orchestra field on the League Board.

Conference concluded with an inspirational sneak peek of “The Declaration Project,” featuring pianist and NPR host Lara Downes and jazz musician and composer Arturo O’Farrill in performance and conversation. This groundbreaking project for piano and orchestra weaves together music and personal narrative in a contemporary declaration of our collective hopes, struggles, and untold histories, and will premiere with the American Composers Orchestra in New York in July 2026.

The Closing Session has been generously sponsored by BMI.

Additional support provided by a generous grant from The Aaron Copland Fund for Music.

Photo Credit: Amy Raab Photography