MAESTRO CLAY COUTURIAUX

Music has been present throughout Clay Couturiaux’s life. He could sense the power of music when he started singing in the church choir at age 5. By age 8, young Clay was playing the piano, which soon fueled his interest in other instruments. By age 10, he had found his instrument: the violoncello. Because it was an orchestral instrument, the violoncello introduced Clay to the symphony orchestra and, through the orchestra, he gained an appreciation for all instruments. However, he admits to remaining biased toward the cello.

After attending his first orchestra rehearsal as a cellist at age 12, he knew he wanted to be a conductor. Couturiaux said, “Understanding what a conductor actually did opened up a new world to me.” Although he views great composers as the “true geniuses” and is content to leave the work of composing to them, he believes the role of the orchestra is to perform and to “recreate their music.” That process of re-creation is driven by the conductor.

Along his path to becoming a conductor, Couturiaux earned his Bachelor of Music in violoncello from the University of North Texas in Denton, graduating with honors in 1994. He then continued his studies at the University of North Texas, earning a Master’s and a Doctorate in orchestral conducting by 2000. In addition, he developed his conducting skills at the world-renowned Pierre Monteux School for Conductors and Orchestra Musicians in Maine and at the National Arts Centre Conductors Programme in Ottawa, Canada. Maestro Couturiaux is now the Assistant Director of Orchestral Studies at the University of North Texas, where he teaches fundamentals of con- ducting technique, advanced orchestral conducting, administrates the orchestral studies area, and is conductor of the UNT Concert Orchestra.

Couturiaux describes the art of conducting as “one of the most complex and demanding activities in the realm of music” because three things must come together: the conductor’s personal study, the preparation of rehearsal, and the culmination of the performance itself.

Clay Couturiaux is the proud father of two teenage daughters. In his free time, he enjoys all sports (especially the Dallas Cowboys), scary movies, and traveling with his family. He also loves trying new beers, though his favorite beverage is always an Old Fashioned. He is a music connoisseur and, beyond classical music, the Oskar Peterson trio is one of his favorites.

A little-known fact about Maestro Couturiaux is that he was the first person to have an ice cream named after him at Sweet Firefly Gourmet Ice Cream. Maestro Couturiaux loves Butterfinger candy bars, so the local ice cream shop partnered with the RSO to create Conductor’s Crunch in his honor, a delicious and handcrafted combination of Sweet Firefly’s sweet cream ice cream, decadent Ghirardelli caramel sauce and Couturiaux’s beloved Butterfingers. A decade later, it’s still a fan favorite.

States Garvie, “Clay Couturiaux is a remarkable man and it’s a tremendous honor to work with him. He’s a genius when it comes to classical music and I marvel at how hard he works to prepare for each concert and how skillfully he works with our musicians throughout each rehearsal to create such moving and powerful performances.” Musician, father, sports fan and overall great guy, Clay Couturiaux is a Richardson gem.