Robert Spano, conductor, pianist, composer, and teacher, is known worldwide for the intensity of his artistry and distinctive communicative abilities, creating a sense of inclusion and warmth among musicians and audiences. Music Director of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra (FWSO) since August 2022, Spano will continue there through July 2031, shaping the artistic direction of the orchestra and driving its continued growth. He is Music Director of the Washington National Opera (WNO), and after 20 seasons as Music Director of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (ASO), he now serves as its Music Director Laureate. He is also Principal Guest Conductor of the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra & Music School, where he previously served as Principal Conductor.
An avid mentor to rising artists, he is responsible for nurturing the careers of numerous celebrated composers, conductors, and performers. As Music Director of the Aspen Music Festival and School since 2011, he oversees the programming of more than 300 events and educational programs for 630 students and young performers; he also directs the Aspen Conducting Academy, which offers participants unparalleled training and valuable podium experience.
In his fifth season as music director of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, Spano leads six weeks of symphonic programs, including Mahler’s Sixth Symphony and a world premiere by Christopher Theofanidis. With Washington National Opera, Spano leads the company premiere of John Adams’s Nixon in China and a new production of Mozart’s Idomeneo, as well as the one-night concert event We the People. Other highlights of the season include his annual return to the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, featuring a world premiere by Adam Schoenberg, as well as a week with the Rhode Island Philharmonic. As a guest conductor, he appears with the Kansas City Symphony, the KBS Symphony Orchestra (Seoul), the Prague Symphony Orchestra and in June 2027, conducts the opening concert of the Round Top Festival Institute in Texas.
Robert Spano made his Metropolitan Opera debut in 2019, leading the US premiere of Nico Muhly’s Marnie. Recent concert highlights include several world-premiere performances, including The Sacrifice of Isaac by Jonathan Leshnoff with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra; Steven Mackey’s Aluminum Flowers and James Ra’s Te Deum with the Curtis Symphony Orchestra; Jake Heggie’s Earth 2.0 with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra; and a new production of Fidelio with the Washington National Opera.
With a discography of critically acclaimed recordings for Telarc, Deutsche Grammophon, and ASO Media, Robert Spano has garnered four Grammy™ Awards and eight nominations with the Atlanta Symphony. Spano’s latest recording as a pianist and composer is “Songs of Orpheus” with mezzo-soprano Kelley O’Connor, released in August 2025 on Sono Luminus.
Spano is on faculty at Oberlin Conservatory and has received honorary doctorates from New England Conservatory of Music, Bowling Green State University, the Curtis Institute of Music, Emory University, and Oberlin. Maestro Spano is a recipient of the Georgia Governor's Award for the Arts and Humanities and is one of two classical musicians inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame.
JULY 2026 -- AT THE REQUEST OF THE ARTIST, PLEASE DO NOT ALTER THIS BIOGRAPHY WITHOUT APPROVAL