Director, University of Manitoba Symphony Orchestra
Room 319 Taché Hall
150 Dafoe Road
University of Manitoba (Fort Garry Campus)
Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2
Monica Chen
An emerging Canadian conductor, Monica Chen is the Assistant Conductor of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, working closely with Maestros Daniel Raiskin and Julian Pellicano, as well as Music Director of the University of Manitoba Symphony Orchestra and Sistema Winnipeg. She is a conducting fellow with both the Orchestre Métropolitain’s Conducting Academy and Tapestry Opera, assisting opera companies across Canada.
In the faculty
- Conductor, University of Manitoba Symphony Orchestra (UMSO)
- Music Director, University of Manitoba Symphony Orchestra
- Instrumental conducting
Education
- BMus, Violin performance, University of British Columbia
- Artist Diploma, Violin performance, University of Northern Iowa
- MMus, Violin performance, Indiana University
Professional highlights
An emerging Canadian conductor, Monica Chen was recently appointed Assistant Conductor of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, working closely with Maestros Daniel Raiskin and Julian Pellicano, as well as Music Director of the University of Manitoba Symphony Orchestra and Sistema Winnipeg.
She was selected as one of the conducting fellows in the inaugural year of Orchestre Métropolitain’s Conducting Academy and has been assisting Yannick Nézet-Séguin since 2021. She is also a conducting fellow with Tapestry Opera, assisting opera companies across Canada, most recently with Opera Kelowna and Manitoba Opera.
Recent conducting engagements outside of Winnipeg include working with Astrolabe Musik Theatre, Allegra Chamber Orchestra, Opera Kelowna, Orchestre Symphonique de Québec and the Orchestre Métropolitain. She has had the opportunity to work with acclaimed conductors such as maestros Neil Varon, Thomas Rösner, and the late Bramwell Tovey. Monica completed her graduate studies in Orchestral Conducting from UBC studying with Dr. Jonathan Girard and in Violin Performance from Indiana University studying with Mimi Zweig.