Illinois' Danville Symphony Orchestra Appoints New Music Director

Conductor Matthew Sheppard will step into the role

The Danville Symphony Orchestra (DSO) has named conductor Matthew Sheppard as its next Music Director. He was selected following a year-long search that assessed 60 different applicants, following the recent retirement of Jeremy Swerling — who has led the orchestra for the last 27 years.

Sheppard has been associated with the DSO for a year. In the 2022/23 season, he and the other finalist for the position came to Danville to conduct two season concerts each, as well as visiting school ensembles and community organizations.

Sheppard is presently Music Director of the University Chamber Orchestra at the University of Chicago and the Gilbert and Sullivan Opera Company of Chicago. He is also the Artistic Director of the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra (EYSO) and the Hyde Park Youth Symphony.

He has also appeared with the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional del Paraguay, the Champaign Urbana Symphony Orchestra, the Lake Geneva Symphony Orchestra, and the Blue Lake International Youth Symphony.

"I’m absolutely thrilled to join the Danville community and continue the fabulous work of the Danville Symphony Orchestra,” Sheppard. said. “The DSO staff, board, and wider community have been so welcoming this year, and we can’t wait to show you what the next season brings to us in Danville!"

"I’m absolutely thrilled to join the Danville community and continue the fabulous work of the Danville Symphony Orchestra," Sheppard said. "The DSO staff, board, and wider community have been so welcoming this year, and we can’t wait to show you what the next season brings to us in Danville!"