Edmonton Symphony Orchestra music director stepping down next year

There will soon be a new face of the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (ESO) as current music director Bill Eddins will step down next year.

Eddins started conducting with the ESO in 2004. This season, which kicks off Friday night, will be his last. He will become the organization’s first-ever music director emeritus.

He said the transition will allow him to focus on different things, including the Winspear Completion Project. The project will see the development of a parking lot on 97 Street into a new educational, re-hear and performance space.

“I get to start changing the organization, start changes in my own life that I’ve been contemplating for years – I’m trying to finish my book, I’ve become obsessed with tennis again – it just seemed like the right time to make this particular transition,” he told Global News, adding he will continue to make the commute between Edmonton and his family home in Minneapolis.

ESO executive director Annemarie Petrov said Eddins’s move is an exciting moment in the organization’s history.

“We’ve never had a music director emeritus before. It just seems to be a very natural progression for Bill and for the organization. It allows us to continue to build on everything we’ve built with Bill over the last couple years,” she said.

Eddins said he has seen a growth in audience members during his time at the ESO.

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“I see a very diverse audience, which is always fun. It’s just really fun to see people come together around a concert and just be able to bond and have fun and relate to other people,” he said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "I see a very diverse audience, which is always fun. It's just really fun to see people come together around a concert and just be able to bond and have fun and relate to other people," he said.

And he hopes he has helped change Edmontonians’ relationship with the arts.

“Being in the role, I really hope so because this is what we’re here to do. We’re just here to provide good concerts, wonderful entertainment and good music; to give people the opportunity to embrace…that is the best thing ever.”

Petrov agrees, saying Eddins has a special way of connecting with the audience.

“He understands people. He loves music and he wants you to love the music in the way he does and he knows how to make it possible.”

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One moment that sticks out for Eddins is when the ESO was invited to perform at world-famous Carnegie Hall in 2012. It is an experience he will never forget.

“To play Carnegie Hall, is, you have written your name, more importantly the sound that you make, in the history of music. It’s there forever. The first hack to walk on that stage was a guy named Tchaikovsky. You follow in those footsteps. That’s not bad.”

There is no word on when a new music director will be selected.