Eastman Faculty

Michael Wheatley is the Asst. Conductor of the Eastman Philharmonia Orchestra at the Eastman School of Music. Prior to this position he served as the Assoc. Conductor of the American Youth Philharmonic, Assoc. Conductor of the Southern Illinois Symphony Orchestra, and Music Director of the Seven Hills Sinfonietta. He has been a guest conductor on three continents, most recently in Poland, Russia and Ukraine, and in the USA with the Rochester Philharmonic, Southern Illinois Music Festival, and the Cincinnati Chamber Opera. Dedicated to classical music education, he has led the student orchestras of Southern Illinois University, the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music, Southeast Missouri State University, Northern Kentucky University, The Eastman School of Music, the Monteux Festival Orchestra, the St. Petersburg State Academic Symphony (St. Petersburg, Russia), and the American Youth Philharmonic Orchestra.

Maestro Wheatley’s conducting teachers have included Christopher Zimmerman, Neil Varon, Vassily Sinaisky, Gustav Meier, and David Zinman. He has collaborated with scores of professional artists including soprano Renee Fleming, violinist David Kim, clarinetist Eric Mandat, and Pulitzer-winning composers John Adams, Ned Rorem, Kevin Putz, Christopher Rouse, and Jennifer Higdon. He is an alumnus of conducting programs at the Pierre Monteux School for Conductors (Hancock, Maine), Peter the Great Music Academy (St. Petersburg, Russia), and the College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati. He is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in Orchestral Conducting at the Eastman School of Music.