Laura Jackson is in her 14th season as Music Director of Reno Philharmonic
As women continue to gain traction as trailblazers within industries, women in niche markets like orchestra conductors are just beginning to break the glass ceilings. According to the most recent data available from the League of American Orchestras, only 14.6% of U.S orchestra conductors at all levels were women. Additionally, the organization’s 2022 Orchestra Repertoire Report found that works by women composers and composers of color (living and deceased) rose by four hundred percent.
Laura Jackson, music director for Reno Philharmonic, now in her 14th season, is paving a new direction for up-and-coming female conductors and composers through her artistry, leadership and creative community engagement. She conducted Symphony No. 3: Altered Landscape in May by renowned composer Jimmy López Bellido. An agreement was made that other orchestras who wanted to perform the piece bypass paying royalties. Instead, they are required to donate $1,000 to the Nature Conservancy, presenting a unique opportunity for orchestras to combat climate change. In addition, the piece itself directly engages with themes of climate and pandemic-induced isolation.
“We were making this piece happen in a pandemic,” Jackson explains. “Most orchestras were not willing to sign on to create this new work. The future of the Symphony Orchestra, when the pandemic started, was looking very precarious. So we had to face a critical point, a juncture where it was either don’t do it, let the project go, or figure out a new way to do it. Rather than getting a consortium to help offset the fees, we were able to fund it within our own community. That enabled us to flip the model. Our consortium is taking place now after the world premiere, and we’ve made it easier for orchestras to join because they don’t have to pay anything, just the $1,000... Now, why did we do that? We did that because this symphony is based on a photography collection that is all about humans and the natural environment; it’s about human impact on the earth. We’re really in an age of action. It’s not just about generating awareness and having great conversations about topics. It’s about really taking action that matters.”
Jackson had a 12-year career playing the violin professionally. However, she injured her arm while in college, eventually forcing her into early retirement. So she began observing the conducting classes and watching the conductors rehearse. She became fascinated by how all the different instruments collectively create a beautiful sound.
Laura Jackson, music director at the Reno Philharmonic, played the violin professionally for 12 ... [+]
Although she no longer played the violin professionally, she taught at the Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire. The Academy needed a conductor for the amateur orchestra, and Jackson willingly stepped into the role; it was her foray into the world of conducting. That experience prompted her to go back to school to study the specific art form.
“I played for a long time, but I was in pain,” Jackson expresses. “I didn’t become a conductor because I could no longer play the violin. I became a conductor because I felt like conducting was a better fit for me in so many ways. I was sitting in orchestras so fascinated by the timpani part or what the woodwinds were playing that I would miss an entry. So that’s when I knew that it was really on the podium that I wanted to be.”
Her first professional conducting performance was with an ad hoc group of experienced players in Boston. Although Jackson was nervous, she confidently led them through the pieces, solidifying her decision to become a conductor. She then served as the first female assistant conductor of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.
She has since gone on to guest conduct nationally and internationally. Her portfolio includes performances with Atlanta, Baltimore, Berkeley, Hawaii and Winnipeg symphonies. In addition, Jackson has had concerts with the Philly POPS and L’Orchestre Symphonique de Bretagne in France.
Laura Jackson, Reno Philharmonic’s music director, is at the helm of innovative ... [+]
In 2008, Jackson became a finalist for the opening at Reno Philharmonic. The interviewers attended one of the symphonies she was guest conducting. They admired her ability to garner trust amongst the musicians and how she conducted herself on stage. Jackson beat out hundreds of applicants to secure the position.
As Jackson continues to pivot in her career, she focuses on the following essential steps:
- Bring your entire self to what you do. It may lead you in a different direction, but that’s ok. You very well might end up in a better situation.
- Take the risk. It will build your self-confidence and attract the right opportunity in your life.
- Be honest with yourself. When you’re not, it’s an internal battle that slows down your progress and hinders your success rate.
“I have learned to ask for more,” Jackson concludes. “Not because I want it but because the music demands it; the composer went to the trouble with pen and ink to write down all of these little dots and dashes. Because they labored for months and years to create this two-dimensional object, something on a piece of paper, it is our responsibility to breathe life into it; to put it into a multi-dimensional space. So I’ve learned over time to always come back and attach to the mission and to the power of music. That has allowed me to be in a way that is less self-conscious.”
