Timothy Muffitt

Artistic Director, Music School Festival Orchestra

Performing and Visual Arts — Programming

About Tim

Timothy Muffitt is the artistic director of the School of Music and conductor of the Music School Festival Orchestra at Chautauqua Institution.

Music Director and Conductor of the Lansing Symphony Orchestra, Mr. Muffitt was recently named music director laureate of the Baton Rouge Symphony following a 21-year tenure as music director with that ensemble. Muffitt continues to appear with other prominent orchestras around the country. Recent seasons have included concerts with the St. Louis, Flint, Tulsa, Atlanta, and Ann Arbor Symphonies. Prior years have included return engagements with the San Francisco, Houston, Long Beach, Phoenix and Virginia Symphonies as well as the Buffalo Philharmonic.

Other guest appearances have taken Muffitt to the podiums of The Hollywood Bowl, Edmonton, and Spokane Symphonies, Columbus Ohio’s Pro Musica Chamber Orchestra, the Grant Park Music Festival Orchestra in Chicago and the Harrisburg (Pennsylvania) Symphony among others. Along with the continued artistic growth of his orchestras, Muffitt’s work has been noted for its innovative and imaginative programming, broadly diverse repertoire, and fresh, engaging, audience experiences. A strong proponent of community arts education, he has been very active in musical outreach through the venues of radio, lecture, and social media, presenting arts-enrichment programs through a variety of formats for diverse audiences.

Formerly associate conductor with the Austin Symphony, Muffitt was also artistic director of the Louisiana Philharmonic’s Casual Classics Series in New Orleans for over a decade. It was for his work in that position that he was awarded a Certificate of Meritorious Service from the American Federation of Musicians. Prominent performers and composers with whom Mr. Muffitt has worked include Lang Lang, Yo Yo Ma, Renee Fleming, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Andre Watts, Alicia de Larrocha, Pinchas Zukerman, Van Cliburn, Lynn Harrell, Itzhak Perlman, and composers John Cage, Joseph Schwantner, Ellen Taffe Zwilich, John Harbison, Joan Tower and Bernard Rands among many others.

Why did you choose to work at Chautauqua? What do you like about working at Chautauqua?

A mentor of mine had my current position and told me about the opening. It was at the time a wonderful opportunity for a young person, and it remains a wonderful opportunity for an older person. I love the focus on excellence and the work toward making the world a better place.

Professional Affiliations

Recording Academy

Personal Interests

Photography, agriculture, and spending time outdoors hiking