An author of requiems, ballets, symphonies and concerts, once referred to as the “new Mozart” - prodigy conductor Alex Prior has received his first professional appointment - an unprecedented Chairman’s Fellow position.
The 17-year old musician of Russian origin has been appointed Assistant to the Guest Conductors at the Seattle Symphony.
The great-great grandson of the revolutionary Russian theater reformer and founder of “method acting,” Konstantine Stanislavsky, Alex Prior was only eight when he composed his first symphony.
Since then he has kept surprising audiences worldwide, including established musicians and renowned artists like Meryl Streep who kneeled in front of the 11-year-old Prior when he sang “O Sole Mio” at the Moscow International Film Festival awards ceremony in 2004.
The Seattle Symphony’s Board Chair Leslie Jackson Chihuly was quoted as saying she was thrilled to have “such a promising young conductor as Alex” joining their conducting team.
Prior is expected to hold the position from January to July while he continues his studies at the St. Petersburg Conservatory.
He’s already conducted orchestras in Russia and overseas, including the UK’s National Symphony Orchestra.