Meet Our Guest Conductor - Jeffrey Klefstad
Jeffrey Klefstad has firmly established himself as a vibrant conductor with a deep and thorough understanding of the orchestral repertoire. His attention to detail, innovative programming, and unique musical styling have garnered him recognition both nationally and internationally. Since 2013, Klefstad has been the Music Director and Conductor of the All-University Orchestra (AUO) at Carnegie Mellon University. He also serves as Assistant Conductor and Company Manager with Resonance Works.
Klefstad’s extensive conducting experience as a guest and cover conductor includes engagements with prestigious orchestras such as the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Memphis Symphony Orchestra, Bohuslav Martinu Philharmonic, Johnstown Symphony Orchestra, Norwalk Symphony Orchestra, and Akron Symphony Orchestra. His versatility as a conductor is evident from his work with a wide range of ensembles, including the contemporary Meitar Ensemble, Quasar Saxophone Quartet, Resonance Works Chamber Orchestra, McGill Symphony Orchestra, McGill Contemporary Music Ensemble, L’Orchestre du Conservatoire de la Montérégie, and the Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh. He has also served as music director for productions of Handel’s Giulio Cesare and Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, and as assistant conductor for countless opera productions. Among his interests, Klefstad is a frequent collaborator in performing new music. He commissioned and premiered two compositions with the AUO Symphony—Nancy Galbraith’s Photons and Adam Hochstatter’s Nothing Left for Us. While based in Montréal, he conducted the world premiere of Michael Kim-Sheng’s Matriphagy, presented François Morel’s Strophes, séquences, et mouvements, and led performances of Denys Bouliane’s Jeux de société for the Canadian Music Day Festival.
Klefstad has been recognized with numerous honors and awards, including 3rd Prize in The American Prize for Orchestral Programming (2023), 3rd Prize in The American Prize for Orchestral Conducting (2019), and as a finalist in the Lányi Competition for orchestral conductors in Serbia (2021). He was also selected as a Conducting Fellow with the Allentown Symphony Orchestra (2023) and a Conducting Fellow with the Aurora Music Festival (Sweden) under the tutelage of conductors Leif Segerstam, Johannes Gustavsson, and the late Neville Marriner.
Notable conductors and composers with whom Klefstad has worked include Manfred Honeck, Kurt Masur, Robert Moody, Keith Lockhart, Jorge Mester, Kenneth Kiesler, Steve Reich, Diane Wittry, Jennifer Higdon, Roberto Sierra, and Samuel Jones, among many others.
Born and raised in rural North Dakota, Klefstad holds degrees from Concordia College (Moorhead, MN), James Madison University, Case Western Reserve University, and a Doctor of Music degree from the École de musique Schulich—Université McGill, where he studied conducting with Alexis Hauser and Guillaume Bourgogne. He resides outside of Pittsburgh with his husband, Ryan, and their Boston Terrier, Molly. More at www.jeffreyklefstad.com