Music Director - Lois Ferrari

Lois Ferrari is Professor of Music at Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas and has been a member of the faculty since 1993. Dr. Ferrari conducts the SU Orchestra, Wind Ensemble, Opera Orchestra, and Pit Orchestra, and also teaches beginning and advanced conducting. Her ensembles have performed at national conventions and with renowned guest artists. Several of Dr. Ferrari's conducting students have gone on to pursue graduate degrees in conducting at institutions such as the Peabody Institute, the Ithaca College School of Music, Butler University, the University of Texas at Arlington, and the University of Texas at Austin. 

		As ACO Music Director, Dr. Ferrari has brought many celebrated guest artists to the ACO stage: Peter Bay, Dick Floyd, Lauren Lane,  Anton Nel, Andrew Sords, David Whitwell, and Hai Zheng, just to name a few.  She has also been intimately involved with nurturing future virtuosi through the ACO's annual Pearl Amster Youth Concerto Festival. Dr. Ferrari believes one of the more important responsibilities a conductor shoulders is that of championing new music. To that end, the ACO sponsors a bi-annual composition contest open to American composers of any age.

Education

A graduate of the Eastman School of Music, where she received a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in conducting, Dr. Ferrari was a recipient of a full doctoral fellowship and was appointed Assistant Conductor of the renowned Eastman Wind Ensemble. She also earned a Master of Music degree in conducting and a Bachelor of Music degree in both performance and music education from the Ithaca College School of Music. Her major teachers have included Donald Hunsberger, Rodney Winther, David Effron, and Donald Neuen.

Additional Activities

Aside from her duties at SU and with the ACO, Dr. Ferrari maintains a healthy guest conducting schedule and loves to work with musicians of all ages. She also nurtures a strong interest in playwriting and screenwriting and has won several awards for her efforts. Originally a New Yorker, Dr. Ferrari now resides in Georgetown, Texas, with her husband, Dr. Paul Gaffney, and their two cats, Buddha and Gandhi.
2010-2011 is Lois Ferrari's ninth season with the ACO.