ARTHUR ARNOLD
The Netherlands' conductor Arthur Arnold, Music Director
and Conductor of the Symphony & Opera Academy of the
Pacific (SOAP) made his debut with the Moscow Symphony Orchestra
in the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam with soloists from the
Bolshoi Theatre in the summer of 2001. It was a tremendous
success, spawning the acclaim, "-Arthur Arnold: a promise-
Arnold has a comfortable and extremely musical beat and
maintains inspiring eye contact with the musicians",
and earning this an immediate encore invitation for both
Arnold and the orchestra a mere two weeks later.
Upon performing expanded Russian repertoire, the national
newspaper N.R.C. wrote: "Arthur Arnold radiates serenity
and natural authority. He conducted the great repertoire
in grand style and in tranquil tempi that allowed the typical
Russian sound of the orchestra to flourish, thanks to an
excellent balance... Arnold succeeded to immediately achieve
a great musical tension and thrilling atmosphere. The musical
build up was magisterial. It's almost impossible to ruin
Tchaikovsky's love-theme but played like tonight it is one
of the most beautiful melodies ever written."
Soon after the successes in Amsterdam, Arnold was appointed
principal guest conductor of the Moscow Symphony Orchestra.
They were invited back to the Netherlands in 2002, 2003
and 2004 and continue to delight audiences in Russia's famous
Grand Hall of the Moscow Conservatory.
Arnold's talent remains in demand as he conducts orchestras
throughout Europe, North America and Asia, including numerous
repeat engagements in South Korea as principal guest conductor
for the Seoul National Symphony Orchestra. In his home country,
The Netherlands, Arnold has conducted the Netherlands Radio
Symphony Orchestra, the Arnhem Philharmonic Orchestra, the
North Netherlands Orchestra, Holland Symfonia, the Rotterdam
Philharmonic Orchestra, Opera Minora, the Raduga Ensemble
and the Nieuw Ensemble, with whom he toured to the 2002
Asian Contemporary Music Festival. Arnold is frequently
featured in national radio interviews and performances,
often performing with the Moscow Symphony Orchestra.
Under his guidance as Music Director, the Symphony Orchestra
of the Pacific and the Opera of the Pacific have grown in
richness and breadth, motivating Arnold to invest an increasing
portion of his time in Canada, where he also conducted the
Victoria Symphony Orchestra and the Orchestra of the Glenn
Gould School of Music. Arnold appears in the recently released
musical film "A Single Passion, A Thousand Voices",
a documentary by Avanti Pictures about the International
Choral Festival "Kathaumixw", for which he has
been the Orchestra Conductor and a jury member since 2000.
In addition to the ongoing partnerships in Russia, The
Netherlands, South Korea, and Canada, Arnold frequents Romania
where he conducts the Transylvania State Philharmonic Orchestra
and the Tirgu Mures State Philharmonic Orchestra. His conducting
career has also spanned the countries of Italy, Great Britain,
Poland and the United States.
Arnold formally studied conducting with Anton Kersjes
in the Netherlands and undertook practical training with
Marcello Viotti, Jean Fournet and Graeme Jenkins. In 1996
he received the "Prins Bernhard Foundation" award
to study at the Accademia Chigiana in Siena (Italy) with
Myung-Whun Chung, and was later honoured with the Busenhart
Morgan-Evans award to participate in master classes with
Jorma Panula, Diego Masson, and Gianluigi Gelmetti. During
Dartington's International Summer School of Music, Arnold
conducted three major operas -- Rigoletto, Don Giovanni
and Falstaff.
From 1997 - 2003 Arthur Arnold was the assistant conductor
to the critically acclaimed Hans Vonk. He assisted the maestro
with the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra (USA), Orchestre
Philharmonique de Radio France, the Royal Concertgebouw
Orchestra Amsterdam, the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra,
the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra Holland, the Netherlands
Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Netherlands Opera.
