Zachary Schwartzman

Zachary Schwartzman currently serves as resident conductor and director of orchestral performance of The Orchestra Now (TŌN), associate conductor of the Bard Conservatory Orchestra, music director of the Bard College Community Orchestra, and associate professor of music for Bard College and the Bard College Conservatory of Music. He has appeared numerous times as both assistant conductor and conductor at Bard SummerScape and the Bard Music Festival at the Fisher Center at Bard.

Schwartzman’s symphonic performances have been featured on NPR, including a national broadcast on Performance Today. A recipient of the career development grant from the Bruno Walter Memorial Foundation, he has conducted orchestras around the United States, in Europe, and Latin America. He served as assistant conductor for L’Ensemble orchestral de Paris and the Oakland East Bay Symphony, among other symphonic ensembles, and has held the post of assistant conductor with the American Symphony Orchestra since 2012.

Schwartzman’s extensive operatic credits include two seasons as associate conductor with New York City Opera, where he conducted in their VOX series, and two productions for the Vocal Arts Program at The Juilliard School. He has served as associate or assistant conductor for 15 productions at Glimmerglass Opera, conducting performances of La Traviata, Carmen, and the world premiere of Jeanine Tesori’s A Blizzard on Marblehead Neck. Additionally, he has worked with Deutsche Oper Berlin, Opera Atelier (Toronto), Berkshire Opera Festival, Opéra Français de New York, Gotham Chamber Opera, Connecticut Grand Opera, and Opera Omaha, and completed a 12-year tenure as music director of the Blue Hill Troupe.

Schwartzman’s credits as assistant conductor include recordings on Albany, Bridge, Naxos, Hyperion, and AVIE Records; Canary and Sorel Classics; and a Grammy-nominated world-premiere recording for Chandos Records. In addition to degrees in piano performance and orchestral conducting, he earned a B.A. in East Asian studies from Oberlin College.

Zachary Schwartzman will conduct TŌN on September 27, 2026 and March 21, 2027. He previously conducted the orchestra over 25 times.

Bio: Aug 2026