Halifax/Kjipuktuk – Symphony Nova Scotia Board Chair David Wilson wishes to share that CEO Chris Wilkinson will say adieu to Symphony Nova Scotia on June 30, 2025. After 12 seasons leading the organization, Chris is ready to enjoy his retirement. The Symphony Board has initiated a recruitment committee who have begun the search process to select the Symphony’s next CEO.

“Chris has provided exceptional leadership to Symphony Nova Scotia,” says David. “He has thoughtfully and strategically led us on our vision of every Nova Scotian experiencing expression and creativity as a part of daily life. We are deeply grateful for Chris’s passion and contributions to professional symphonic music in Nova Scotia.”

Chris began his tenure as CEO of Symphony Nova Scotia in 2013/14, guiding the organization through a period of transformation and growth. Under his leadership, Symphony Nova Scotia has:

• Enjoyed stable finances after a prolonged period of instability, with many successful seasons without an operating deficit (including throughout the pandemic);
• Achieved record-breaking ticket sales and revenue growth between 2014 and 2020;
• Maintained steady employment and payment for all staff and musicians, even during the height of pandemic lockdowns and countless concert cancellations;
• Worked collaboratively to grow the Symphony Nova Scotia Foundation – an independent endowment fund supervised by a voluntary Board of Trustees – from approximately $10M to over $20M, safeguarding the orchestra as a community asset into the future.

“Chris Wilkinson has been an exceptional leader for Symphony Nova Scotia,” says Dennice Leahey, Symphony Nova Scotia Foundation Trustee and former Symphony Nova Scotia Board Chair. “With vision, heart, and unwavering dedication, Chris guided the organization through periods of transformation and resilience. He should be proud of what he’s accomplished. Chris’s impact has been substantial, and the Symphony Nova Scotia Foundation is grateful for his many years of service to the orchestra we all care so deeply about.”

Chris’s connection to the orchestra predates his time as CEO, dating back 39 years to when he first moved to Halifax to accept the role of Principal Second Violin in 1986, along with his wife Suzanne Lemieux, who was Symphony Nova Scotia’s Principal Oboe from 1986 to 2022. Chris performed in this role for over 20 years, during which time he was also Concertmaster of the Charlottetown Festival Orchestra, an active chamber musician, and a member of the Violin Faculty at Acadia University.

In addition to performing as a member of the orchestra, Chris was also the orchestra’s Personnel and Production Manager; in this role, he was extensively involved in the artistic operations of the orchestra, working with conductors such as Georg Tintner, Simon Streatfeild, Raffi Armenian, and Bernhard Gueller. He is known for fostering lasting relationships within the arts community and has worked creatively with organizations such as Halifax Dance, Mermaid Theatre, Ballet Jörgen, The Elmer Iseler Singers, Il Divo, and many others.

“My very first contact when I came as a guest conductor in 2002 was Chris,” says Bernhard Gueller, Music Director Laureate of Symphony Nova Scotia. “Then the Personnel Manager and Principal Second Violin, we established a warm rapport which deepened over the years… with almost daily contact until I left Halifax in 2018, I found him to have good artistic ideas and he was a more than reliable CEO, with what was best for the organization as the center of his ethos. He was rock solid in a changing industry and I wish him all the best as he moves on and thank him for his close collaboration.”

Chris spent a few years away from Nova Scotia as the General Manager of the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra from 2011 to 2013; during his time with the TBSO, they saw significant growth in audience attendance and community engagement and received the Thunder Bay Chamber of Commerce 2013 non-profit Award of Excellence. He returned to Symphony Nova Scotia to take on the role of CEO during a crucial transitional period in the orchestra’s history.

“Chris was part of the team that chose me to be the Assistant Conductor of the Thunder Bay Symphony, my first conducting job,” says Symphony Nova Scotia’s Artist in Residence & Community Ambassador, Daniel Bartholomew-Poyser. “Later, he helped create this position for me at Symphony Nova Scotia. If it were not for Chris, I don’t know where I would be. I am so grateful for his help, support, and trust over many, many years and look forward to years of future friendship.”

In recognition of the significant contributions Chris has made to Halifax and Nova Scotia, he was awarded the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee medal in 2023 by His Honour the Honourable Arthur J. LeBlanc, O.N.S., K.C., Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia.

During his more than decade-long tenure as CEO, Chris was also instrumental in the development and success of several major legacy projects:

• The Maria Anna Mozart Award – The first of its kind in Canada, the Maria Anna Mozart Award was founded in 2016 by Jane Gordon, a longtime Symphony Nova Scotia attendee with a keen interest in the role of women in classical music. The Award supports the work of Canadian women and non-binary composers, providing $10,000 every two years for the Symphony to commission and perform a new symphonic work.

• The Bernhard Gueller Conductor Fellowship – In its 40th season, Symphony Nova Scotia proudly launched the Bernhard Gueller Conductor Fellowship in honour of the Symphony’s Music Director Laureate Bernhard Gueller. The Fellowship provides a Canadian conductor in the early stages of their career the opportunity to work with a professional orchestra to learn more about effective communication with musicians, balancing the various instruments in the orchestra, administrative duties, and work in the community.

• Provincial Touring – Symphony Nova Scotia expanded its performance venues to reach communities across the province over Chris’s tenure. In celebration of its 40th anniversary, the Symphony traveled to Amherst, Antigonish, Lunenburg, New Glasgow, Wolfville, and Yarmouth for the first full Provincial Tour since 2007. In the years since, the Symphony has also brought the orchestra to perform in Pictou and Cape Breton and plans to continue these meaningful partnerships with various presenters across Nova Scotia.

• Symphony Nova Scotia at 40 – The book Symphony Nova Scotia at 40: A Milestone of Musical History was co-published with Nimbus Publishing and released in September 2023, one of many outstanding achievements to mark the organization’s 40 year history. Longtime Symphony supporters and friends Mary Lu MacDonald, Adrian Hoffman, and Jane Gordon co-authored this fascinating cultural history of classical music in Nova Scotia, from 1749 to the present day, with a foreword by musical collaborator Natalie MacMaster.

• Orchestra Recordings – Symphony Nova Scotia released four exceptional recordings during Chris’s tenure as CEO. First was Tim Brady’s ECMA-winning The How and the Why of Memory. 2016’s Schubert, which was nominated for an ECMA, was the final recording with Bernhard Gueller as Music Director. In 2020, the orchestra received a JUNO nomination for our recording with Sarah Slean performing two song cycles by Canadian composer Christos Hatzis. Finally, 2024’s Defiant Dances (which has been nominated for an ECMA) celebrates women conductors, composers, and performers, led by Music Director Holly Mathieson.

“Chris has been such a calm, reliable partner in the direction of the orchestra,” says Holly. “I’ve so enjoyed his pragmatism, understated sense of humour, and intelligence. He has been a steady hand through the turbulent pandemic years, but through it all, maintained his deep, abiding love for music.”

Symphony Nova Scotia would like to share our thanks, congratulations, and best wishes with Chris as he looks forward to his retirement. We are grateful for the commitment, hard work, and vision that has led his career, and his significant contribution to orchestral music in our province.

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ABOUT SYMPHONY NOVA SCOTIA

Symphony Nova Scotia is Nova Scotia’s orchestra, championing symphonic music in the province for 40 years. With a home base in Halifax/Kjipuktuk and performances across the province, Symphony Nova Scotia is proud to be a vibrant, vital part of Nova Scotia’s rich cultural community. From sold-out orchestral concerts to free family events, youth and seniors’ activities, and educational partnerships, Symphony Nova Scotia creates unforgettable experiences with truly great music. Visit symphonynovascotia.ca to learn more.

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For more information, please contact:

Emily Richards
Director of Marketing & Communications
Symphony Nova Scotia
902.421.5264
[email protected]
symphonynovascotia.ca