Music Director
Adam johnson
After an intensive multi-year search, the Baton Rouge Symphony Search Committee and Board of Directors hired Maestro Adam Johnson as BRSO’s Music Director, effective July 1, 2023.
Working at the highest levels of the Canadian music scene, award-winning conductor Adam Johnson has been hailed as "an exciting talent" and for his "charismatic and commanding presence" on the podium. A highly-sought leader, he completed his tenure as resident conductor of the Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal (OSM) in 2019 and has conducted over 80 concerts with the OSM. He recorded his first full album, Riopelle Symphonique, with the OSM in 2022 and won an Opus Prize with the renowned orchestra in 2018. Prior to his tenure in Montreal, he was the resident conductor of Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra and today has guest-conducted more than a dozen orchestras across Canada and the United States. In Europe, he has worked with the Opéra National de Paris, the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra, the Staatsorchestre Rheinische Philharmonie, and members of the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg.
Known for his extraordinary versatility, Adam Johnson has conducted sold-out concerts with dozens of leading artists in a wide range of styles, extending beyond classical to pop, jazz, and Broadway. He is regularly invited to studio record with orchestras for major international projects and has recorded for virtual reality exhibits. He has been the Mécénat Musica Educator-in-Residence since 2019, creating educational materials for music educators and offering workshops and performances to increase the quantity and quality of music education for youth. A recipient of a Canada Council conducting award, he holds a Doctorate in piano performance from the Université de Montréal and a prize in orchestral conducting from the Conservatoire de Musique de Montréal.
resident Conductor
David Torns
Resident Conductor of the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, David Torns continues to be recognized for his vibrant personality, musical depth, and his ability to communicate an infectious joy for music to both musicians and audiences alike.
Mr. Torns also holds the post of Principal Pops Conductor of the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra. He has collaborated with pops artists such as the Wicked Divas, Spectrum Motown, Classical Mystery Tour, Doug LaBrecque, Debbie Gravitte, Christiane Noll, and Hugh Panaro. He recently collaborated with Grammy Award winning jazz vocalist Dianne Reeves, and American Idol finalists Haley Scarnato, Matt Giraud, and LaKisha Jones.
Mr. Torns has worked with the Lansing Symphony, Omaha Symphony, Baltimore Chamber Orchestra, Astoria Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, and Acadiana Symphony Orchestra among others.
As Music Director of the Louisiana Youth Orchestras, he is a passionate promoter of music education. Mr. Torns has appeared in concert with student orchestras throughout the United States including the Vanderbilt University Symphony, Nashville Youth Symphony, West Virginia University Symphony, the North Carolina School for the Arts “Musica Piccola” Orchestra, and the Greater New Orleans Youth Orchestra. He conducted the 2013 All-Southern California Honor Orchestra. Mr. Torns designs and implements engaging educational concerts reaching over 10,000 students each year.
Equally at home in the theatre, David has guided the collaboration of the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra and the Baton Rouge Ballet Theatre’s production of “The Nutcracker” since 2010. He has also led orchestras for productions by Playmakers of Baton Rouge, Theatre Baton Rouge, and Central Community Theatre.
Mr. Torns is an alumnus of many prestigious music festivals including the Idyllwild School of Music and the Arts, Sewanee Summer Music Festival, and the Chautauqua Institution. He has performed in master classes with Harold Farberman, Marin Alsop, Apo Hsu, Guillermo Figueroa, Karen Deal, Eduardo Navega, Leon Botstein, Donald Portnoy, Samuel Jones, and Paul Vermel. He has also studied with Kenneth Kiesler, Markand Thakar, and Timothy Muffitt.
Mr. Torns was selected as a participant in the first Conductors Symposium with the Omaha Symphony, performing in master classes with Thomas Wilkins and Mark Gibson. Selected for the American Symphony Orchestra League’s Donald Thulean Conducting Workshop in Atlanta, he has also worked with James Paul, Robert Spano, and Michael Morgan.
A graduate of the Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University and the College of Creative Arts at West Virginia University, Torns began his musical studies at the age of five on the violin in his native city of San Diego, California.
Chorus Master
David Shaler
David Shaler is the Director of Music and Arts at Broadmoor United Methodist Church in Baton Rouge. He has served there since 2001 as conductor of choral and instrumental ensembles, and as a singer, pianist, and trumpet player. Prior to coming to Louisiana, he conducted church choirs in Georgia and Iowa. He received his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Iowa and has conducted collegiate choirs at that institution, as well as at Coe College in Iowa. In 2012, part of his doctoral thesis was published: a modern performing edition of an 18th Century Magnificat by the Italian composer Leonardo Leo. In 2013, he was a co-conductor for the world premiere of Robert Kyr’s cantata, Waging Peace, written for the Baton Rouge community. He also serves as an evaluator for the EBR Parish Talented Music program.
Mr. Shaler sang as a countertenor for five seasons with the professional male ensemble, Chanticleer, touring nationally and internationally in concert and making several recordings. As a countertenor soloist, he has sung for collegiate and community groups, including for the Baton Rouge Symphony and Chorus in their 2004 Messiah concert. He sang as a chorister with the Atlanta Symphony Chorus under Robert Shaw for two seasons (1986-1988), which included a European tour and several recordings. He has also participated in professional choral workshops at Carnegie Hall with conductors Robert Shaw, Peter Schreier, and Helmuth Rilling.