John McLaughlin Williams (born 1957) is a Grammy award-winning American orchestral conductor and violinist. He attended the

Boston University School of Music The Boston University College of Fine Arts (CFA) at Boston University consists of the School of Music, the School of Theatre, and the School of Visual Arts. Each school offers degrees in the performing and visual arts at the undergraduate and grad ...

, the New England Conservatory and is a graduate of The

Cleveland Institute of Music The Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM) is a private music conservatory in Cleveland, Ohio. Founded in 1920 by Ernest Bloch, it enrolls 325 students in the conservatory and approximately 1,500 students in the preparatory and continuing educatio ...

. His violin studies were with Dorothy DeLay, conducting with Carl Topilow and composition with

Donald Erb Donald Erb (January 17, 1927 – August 12, 2008) was an American composer best known for large orchestral works such as Concerto for Brass and Orchestra and ''Ritual Observances''. Early years Erb was born in Youngstown, Ohio, graduate ...

and Margaret Brouwer. He has appeared as a guest conductor with the Novaya Russiya, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine, Classic FM Symphony Orchestra (Sofia), the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Sinfonietta, and many other ensembles. He has recorded several CDs for the Naxos Records label, all in thei
American Classics
series, where he has shown a remarkable ability to uncover lost gems by American composers of the first half of the 20th century (such as Henry Hadley and

John Alden Carpenter John Alden Carpenter (February 28, 1876 – April 26, 1951) was an American composer. Carpenter's compositional style was considered to be mainly "mildly modernistic and impressionistic"; many of his works strive to encompass the spirit of America ...

), and bring them vividly to life with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine and the National Radio Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine. The resurgence of interest in western American composer

George Frederick McKay George Frederick McKay (June 11, 1899 – October 4, 1970) was a prolific modern American composer. Biography McKay was born in the small frontier wheat farming town of Harrington, Washington. His family later moved to Spokane, where he att ...

(1899-1970) can be attributed to William's pioneering Naxos recordings of McKay's music. He was awarded a Grammy in 2007 for his recording of Olivier Messiaen's '' Oiseaux exotiques'', in which he conducted the

Cleveland Chamber Symphony The Cleveland Chamber Symphony is an American chamber orchestra based in Cleveland, Ohio. It is dedicated to the performance of contemporary classical music, and has presented over 200 performance premieres. History The Cleveland Chamber Sym ...

with pianist Angelin Chang, who also received a Grammy. Williams has received a total of four Grammy nominations. Williams has also served as assistant conductor of the

Britt Festival The Britt Music & Arts Festival is a non-profit performing arts festival located in Jacksonville, Oregon. Since its creation it has been among the premier performing arts festivals in the Northwest, and has managed to attract high-profile and loc ...

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

. As a violinist, he has appeared as a soloist around the United States and was an active freelancer in the Boston area, where he was assistant

concertmaster The concertmaster (from the German ''Konzertmeister''), first chair (U.S.) or leader (U.K.) is the principal first violin player in an orchestra (or clarinet in a concert band). After the conductor, the concertmaster is the second-most signifi ...

of the Boston Pops Esplanade Orchestra and played as a substitute with the

Boston Symphony The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the " Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in 1881, ...

. Williams was also a member of the

Houston Symphony The Houston Symphony is an American orchestra based in Houston, Texas. The orchestra is resident at the Jesse H. Jones Hall for the Performing Arts. History The first concert of what was to become the Houston Symphony took place on June 21, ...

, and was concertmaster of the Virginia Symphony.

Awards and recognitions

* 2010

Grammy Nomination for Best Chamber Music Performance The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

br>2010 Grammy.com Classical Nominees
* 2010

Grammy Nomination for Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with orchestra) The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

br>2010 Grammy.com Classical Nominees
*

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

* 2007

Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with orchestra) The Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with orchestra) was awarded from 1959 to 2011. From 1967 to 1971, and in 1987, the award was combined with the award for Best Instrumental Soloist Performance (without orchestra) and aw ...

* 2006

Discography

*'' Deon Nielsen Price : Yellow Jade Banquet and other Orchestral Work

' *'' Ernest Bloch ; Violin Concerto, Benjamin Lees: Violin Concerto (2008 Grammy Nomine

' *'' Nicolas Flagello : Missa Sinfonico, Arnold Rosner: Symphony No.5 ''Missa sine Cantoribus super Salve Regina

' *'' Olivier Messiaen : Oiseaux Exotiques'

(2007 Grammy Winner) *'' Nicolas Flagello : Violin Concerto / Orchestral Excerpts from the Operas / Orchestral Songs'

* ''John Alden Carpenter : Adventures in a Perambulator / Symphonies Nos. 1 and 2'

* ''Nicolas Flagello'' : ''Piano Concerto No. 1 / Dante's Farewell / Concerto Sinfonico''

* ''Henry Kimball Hadley: Symphony No. 4 / The Ocean / The Culprit Fay''

* ''George Frederick McKay: From a Moonlit Ceremony / Harbor Narrative'

* ''George Frederick McKay: Violin Concerto / Sinfonietta No. 4 / Song Over the Great Plains'

*'' Quincy Porter: Complete Viola Works (2010 Grammy Nomine

' *''Samuel Coleridge-Taylor: Chamber Music; Nonet, Fantasiestucke, Five Negro Melodies for Piano Trio'' *''Chevalier de Saint-Georges: Six String Quartets''

References

External links

* Ann Arbor.Com 6/13/1
Feature Article
* Detroit Free Press 2/20/09 John McLaughlin Williams is a conductor.

* Arts Management Service

* Seeing Black: The Other Grammy Winne

* TNC Recordings
Featured Article Cleveland Chamber Symphony: Music That Dares To Explore, Vol. 6
* The Carolina Peacemake
Featured Article

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, John Mclaughlin Living people 1957 births Grammy Award winners American male conductors (music) African-American classical musicians Concertmasters DC Youth Orchestra Program alumni Boston University College of Fine Arts alumni New England Conservatory alumni Cleveland Institute of Music alumni 21st-century American conductors (music) 21st-century classical violinists 21st-century American male musicians Male classical violinists 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American people 21st-century American violinists