Meet Stefan Sanders

Music Director

Stefan Sanders is in his third year as Music Director of the Spartanburg Philharmonic. It is also his fourth season as Music Director of the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra in North Carolina and his eighth as Music Director of the Central Texas Philharmonic. Prior to the pandemic, Stefan was scheduled to make debuts this season with the Symphony Orchestra of the Yucatán in Mérida, Mexico, the University of Costa Rica Symphony Orchestra and the Filharmonia Kaliska in Kalisz, Poland, as well as return engagements with the National Orchestra of Cuba and several weeks as the cover/assistant conductor for the New York Philharmonic.

Stefan has collaborated with many distinguished orchestras. Recent guest conducting appearances include the Naples Philharmonic, Sarasota Orchestra, Rochester Philharmonic, Virginia Symphony, Stockton Symphony, San Antonio Symphony, Buffalo Philharmonic, Austin Symphony Orchestra, Austin Opera, Corpus Christi Opera, Bozeman Symphony, Orquesta Sinfónica de Guayaquil (Ecuador), Filharmonia Warminsko-Mazurska (Poland), Filharmonia Padkarpacka (Poland), Symphoria (Syracuse, NY), and the Round Top International Festival Institute. Stefan has collaborated with an array of guest artists, such as renowned violinist Gil Shaham, electric bass virtuoso Victor Wooten, banjo virtuoso, Béla Fleck, pianist and pedagogue Anton Nel, Broadway performer and Seinfeld co-star Jason Alexander, The B-52s, Pink Martini, Vanessa Williams, and many more. In 2018 Stefan concluded a four year tenure with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra. Appointed Associate Conductor in 2014, Stefan was promoted to Resident Conductor in 2016. With the BPO, Stefan lead over 200 performances on all of the orchestra’s series. Of note, Stefan began his professional career as a member of the BPO’s trombone section where he played from 1999-2007 before pursuing conducting full time.

Stefan was a featured conductor for the League of American Orchestras “Bruno Walter National Conductor Preview.” The prestigious conductor showcase is designed to feature talented young conductors poised for music directorships with American Orchestras and was hosted by Giancarlo Guerrero and the Nashville Symphony in May of 2016.

Prior to a career as a conductor, Stefan was an internationally renowned trombonist, having performed as a soloist in North America, Asia, and Europe. His performance of Eric Ewazen’s Concerto for Bass Trombone and Orchestra, with the Czech Philharmonic, can be heard on the Albany Records label. As a trombonist, Stefan performed with several orchestras including the New York Philharmonic, Seattle Symphony Orchestra, the Florida Orchestra, and the Seattle Opera’s 2001 production of Wagner’s Ring Cycle.

Stefan was a fellow at the American Academy of Conducting at Aspen under the tutelage of maestros, Robert Spano, Larry Rachleff and Hugh Wolff. He is a graduate of the Juilliard School, the University of Texas at Austin, and the Interlochen Arts Academy.