James Bagwell

Conductor

“James Bagwell led his eager Chorale and the American Symphony Orchestra with sympathetic verve.”

– MARTIN BERNHEIMER, FINANCIAL TIMES

James Bagwell maintains an active international schedule as a conductor of choral, operatic, and orchestral music. He was recently named associate conductor of The Orchestra Now (TON) and was appointed principal guest conductor of the American Symphony Orchestra in 2009.

latest news

James was recently featured as the Insignia Artists Management Artist of the Month!

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Upcoming Schedule

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June 6, 2025

8:00PM

American Symphony Orchestra

James will prepare the Bard Festival Chorale for a performance of Strauss's first opera Guntram with the American Symphony Orchestra, Leon Botstein conducting

Carnegie Hall
New York, New York
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July 25-August 3, 2025

Dalibor: Bard SummerScape Opera

James will serve as chorus master for this rarely-performed opera.

Fisher Center for the Performing Arts, Sosnoff Theatre
Annandale-on-Hudson, New York
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August 14-15

7:00PM and 3:00PM

Bard Music Festival: Program Six

James will conduct the Bard Festival Chorale in a wide-ranging program of Czech choral works

Church of the Messiah
Rhinebeck, New York
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August 15

7:00PM

Bard Music Festival: Program Seven

James will lead The Orchestra Now and the Bard Festival Chorale in a program of works by Martinů.

Fisher Center, Sosnoff Theater
Annandale-on-Hudson, New York
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August 17

3:00PM

Bard Music Festival: Program Eleven

James will prepare members of the Bard Festival Chorale for a performance of Martinů's opera Julietta.

Fisher Center, Sosnoff Theater
Annandale-on-Hudson
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“The Bard singers, under the direction of James Bagwell, were a highlight of and an authoritative presence throughout, projecting Nono’s fractured, eerie voicings and wailing walls of sound with confidence from their station behind the orchestra. More than the instrumentalists and most of the vocal soloists, or the conductor, Bagwell’s choir gave this allegorical beast much of its galvanizing force.”

– SEAN PICCOLI, NEW YORK CLASSICAL REVIEW

Recordings

June 27, 2014

Philip Glass: Koyaanisqatsi with Orchestra

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