"Concklin’s beat is clear, his sense of rhythm strong...Copland’s masterpiece emerged freshly scrubbed, as vital as ever."
John Young Shik Concklin is Music Director of the Spartanburg Philharmonic and Hendersonville Symphony Orchestra. He also serves as Conductor with the Atlanta Music Project, an El Sistema organization focused on social justice and music, and the Piedmont Chamber Orchestra, a mentoring orchestra for high school and collegiate musicians. For the 2023/24 season, he is also a Music Director Finalist with the Walla Walla Symphony in Washington State.
John is a values forward leader who believes that there is a unique pathway to success for every musical organization in every community, large or small. He seeks to humanize the orchestral experience for audiences through story telling, relationship building, and nuanced culture shifts that make accessibility more inclusive. Organizations for which he has played a leadership role have seen unprecedented artistic growth, a steady increase in ticket sales, and an intangible lift in spirit that translates across the organization and community.
John is deeply committed to the teaching of conducting and leadership and seeks to engage education and learning at every level. He readily seeks opportunities to discuss and share about conducting and makes regular school visits wherever he is working.
Previous positions include Associate Conductor of the Georgia Symphony, Assistant Conductor of the Cleveland Pops Orchestra, and faculty appointments at Vanderbilt, Clemson, Furman and Converse Universities He has been a fellowship conductor at the Aspen Music Festival, a teaching assistant at the Brevard Music Center, and a finalist at the New World Symphony and Debut Orchestras.
John has been a finalist for the 2019-2020 American Prize in Conducting. He has competed internationally at the Almaty, the Nino Rota, and the Città di Brescia Conducting Competitions. He is also regularly invited to cover-conduct for the the Nashville, Atlanta, and Kansas City Symphony Orchestras.
A flexible musician, John has also performed at the Super Bowl Halftime Show and has collaborated with Monica, a Grammy-winning R&B artist.
John studied at Vanderbilt University, Yale University, and the Cleveland Institute of Music. His mentors include David Zinman, Carl Topilow, Shinik Hahm, and Robin Fountain. He received further training from Lorin Maazel and Michael Tilson-Thomas.
John and his wife, Lauren Maxwell, co-founded Mozart for a Cause, a multi genre chamber music concert that fundraises for local causes.