October 2023: Bringing International Experience to the Missoula Symphony Orchestra & Chorale – Maestro Julia Tai

Udo talks to Julia Tai, the Music Director of the Missoula Symphony Orchestra & Chorale. Maestro Tai is also the Music Director of Philharmonia Northwest, and the Co-Artistic Director of the Seattle Modern Orchestra. Her career has led to acclaimed performances and rehearsals with the American Youth Symphony, Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra, Bohuslav Martinu Philharmonic (Czech Republic), Boise Philharmonic, Brandenburger Symphoniker (Germany), Estonian National Youth Symphony (Estonia), to name but a few. 

Born in Taipei, Taiwan, Julia Tai began her violin studies at age four and piano at eight. She received her Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music, where she was awarded “Outstanding Graduate.” She holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in orchestral conducting from the University of Washington. She has studied conducting with some of the finest conductors in the world, including Peter Erös and Jorge Mester, and has participated in masterclasses with Marin Alsop, JoAnn Falletta, Neeme Järvi, Daniel Lewis, Gustav Meier, Otto-Werner Müller, Jorma Panula, and Larry Rachleff. She is recognized as a prominent innovator of the contemporary music world and has established a reputation for her creative programming, community engagement, and innovative education programs. While Julia Tai is becoming one of today’s most dynamic and engaging conductors on the international stage, she is also the first female conductor in the history of the Missoula Symphony. Words cannot describe Maestro Tai, one needs to see her conducting live, on stage, feeling the music!