Joshua Weilerstein

Joshua Weilerstein is an American conductor and violinist born in Rochester, New York in 1987. Praised for his dynamism and commanding presence, Weilerstein is currently Chief Conductor of the Aalborg Symphony Orchestra, Music Director of the Orchestre National de Lille, and a much in-demand guest conductor across the United States and Europe.

Son of Donald Weilerstein - founding first violinist of the Cleveland Quartet - and Vivian Hornik Weilerstein - an accomplished pianist, Weilerstein followed his older sister Alisa in pursuing a musical career. Having toured internationally as a violinist with the Youth Philharmonic Orchestra of Boston, he began studying for a masters degree in violin and conducting at the New England Conservatory.

In 2009, whilst still a student, Weilerstein garnered international attention winning both the First Prize and the Audience Prize at the Malko Competition for Young Conductors in Copenhagen. He subsequently became a Dudamel Conducting Fellow with the Los Angeles Philharmonic for the 2011 - 2012 season, and served as Assistant Conductor of the New York Philharmonic from 2012 to 2015. He was also Artistic Director of the Orchestra de Chambre de Lausanne between 2015 and 2021, during which time he made a number of acclaimed recordings.

In October 2022, more than a decade after first conducting the orchestra as a guest, Weilerstein was appointed the next Chief Conductor of the Aalborg Symphony Orchestra, effective from the start of the 2023 - 2024 season. On commencing the role it was announced that, from September 2024, Weilerstein would also take up the position of Music Director of the Orchestre National de Lille.

Away from the concert hall, Weilerstein hosts a classical music podcast aimed at a broad range of listeners from newcomers to seasoned enthusiasts, amateur players to professional musicians. Launched in 2017, Sticky Notes features interviews with contemporary artists and in-depth analysis of specific pieces of music; to date the show has received more than six million downloads across the globe.