Melia Tourangeau '94: Arts Leadership Careers in Music

Join us for a Professional Development talk with Melia Tourangeau '94, a guest judge of our 2022 Conservatory Concerto Competition. In her talk and Q&A, Melia Tourangeau will discuss leadership careers within the classical music industry including the many opportunities as well as challenges in the field.

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Melia Tourangeau is the President and CEO of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, where she began her tenure in 2015 as the first woman and the youngest CEO in the Symphony’s 124-year history. Tourangeau’s personal and professional commitment to creating deep and meaningful connections between music, musicians and the community is a hallmark of her leadership of the Pittsburgh Symphony, one of America’s most distinguished orchestras.

Soon after her arrival, Tourangeau led the revival of a strategic planning process that has heightened the orchestra’s artistic excellence with innovative concerts, partnerships, premieres, and debuts; moved the organization toward financial stability, including growing the annual fund by 17%; fostered closer cooperation between the board, musicians, staff and volunteers; and deepened the orchestra’s community relationships and reach with new programming and digital technology. She is currently leading a new initiative to promote diversity and inclusion across the organization, with patrons, and with the community. Under Tourangeau’s leadership, the Pittsburgh Symphony has extended the contract of its Music Director, Manfred Honeck, welcomed ten new musicians to the Orchestra and brought new distinguished members of the community to the Board. She successfully led negotiations for a new contract with members of the Orchestra. Tourangeau has represented the orchestra on several highly acclaimed domestic and international tours, enhancing the orchestra’s international reputation. During her tenure, the orchestra’s illustrious recording history has been underscored with numerous GRAMMY Awards and nominations, including the award for Best Orchestral Performance in 2018.

Tourangeau came to the Pittsburgh Symphony from the Utah Symphony | Utah Opera (USUO) in Salt Lake City, Utah, where she served as President & CEO beginning April 2008.  Prior to the USUO, Tourangeau worked for the Grand Rapids Symphony in Michigan, beginning as education director in January 1997, being promoted to director of operations in 1999, then vice president and general manager before being named CEO in 2005. Prior to that, she was the education coordinator at the Akron Symphony Orchestra.

She received a Bachelor of Music degree in 1994 from the Oberlin College Conservatory of Music with a major in piano performance and a minor in musicology.  In April 2007, she received a master’s degree in public administration with an emphasis on nonprofit leadership from Grand Valley State University.

Tourangeau is a member of and serves on the Board of the Pittsburgh Chapter of Young Presidents Organization (YPO), the Pittsburgh Forum of International Women’s Forum and is an officer for Group 1 Managers at the League of American Orchestras.