I have been steadfast in my belief that interaction with audiences should not be confined to “family” or “pops” programs. People coming to any performances have the opportunity to be engaged in many significant ways.
I'm still blown away by the number of people who come to me after a performance and say “the conductor has never spoken to the audience before or helped me understand a piece like that before.” I know many of my performing colleagues aren't comfortable speaking in public or stepping away from their instrument or podium into a different type of limelight. I would have to say to them, if they want to be doing this in 20 years, I can't find an audience who doesn't yearn to be engaged somehow by the performers they paid to see.
Articles & Reviews
- Christie impresses in guest role, The Buffalo News, 11/22/09
- Michael Christie's conducting career takes off, The Buffalo News, 11/17/09
- Phoenix Symphony's 'Nixon in China' keeps symphony relevant, Arizona Republic, 11/13/09
- Civil Disobedience Partners with Michael Christie of the Phoenix Symphony to Chart New Territory, 9/22/09
- A Young Rock Star of the Conducting World (slideshow), The Daily Beast, 9/15/09
- Phoenix Symphony's profound 9/11 concert, Arizona Republic, 9/14/09
- Symphony dives into season with a 'blockbuster splash,' Arizona Republic, 8/23/09
- Michael Christie on international panel of judges for Dilettantemusic.com's Composer-in-Residence Digital Competition, Dilettantemusic.com, 7/23/09
- Top conductors flock to Colorado, Denver Post, 7/19/09
- Soloists to tackle piano concertos at Boulder music festival, Denver Post, 7/16/09
- Ancient Chinese soundtrack charms Boulder, Denver Post, 7/10/09
- Saint Louis: Reliably Excellent, Opera Today, 6/24/09
- Conductor's contemporary fare lauded, Arizona Republic, 6/21/09
- Michael Christie receives two 2009 ASCAP Awards for Adventurous Programming of Contemporary Music (Phoenix Symphony and Brooklyn Philharmonic), 6/11/09
- Enemy Slayer: A Navajo Oratorio selected as a "Best Classical Release" of Q1 2009, Allmusic.com
- Mahler brings out best in symphony, Arizona Republic, 4/12/09
- Grizzly Bear, Final Fantasy, Clogs, Bell Orchestre, Nico Muhly and the Brooklyn Philharmonic, Death+Taxes, 3/3/09
- Two Bands Have a Night in the Orchestral Realm, The New York Times, 3/1/09
- Grizzly Bear and the Brooklyn Philharmonic: A roaring good show, Entertainment Weekly, 3/1/09
- Turf-Sharing, When Indie Met Classical, The New York Times, 2/27/09
- Brooklyn Philharmonic's Eclectic Shuffle Mode, National Geographic Adventure Blog, 2/27/09
- Classical music fights for relevance, Arizona Republic, 2/1/09
- Salsa, Timba and a Dance-Happy String Quartet, The New York Times, 1/29/09
Frequent Flyer, cover story in Symphony magazine, Jan./Feb. 2009 (pdf)
- Review of concert with pianist Louis Lortie and St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 12/05/08
- Beyond Brooklyn: An NSO Debut, Washington Post, 11/14/08
- Colorado Music fest's season a ringing success: Director Michael Christie injects diversity, edge to Boulder series, Denver Post, 8/16/08
- All Together Now, Symphony magazine, July/August 2008
- Navajo oratorio a triumph in Phoenix, Opera Today, 2/17/08
- The Indie Singer-Harpist Who Met the Orchestra, The New York Times, 1/29/08
- The Talented Mr. Christie, by Brad Weismann
