Introduction
Joseph Giunta (born May 8, 1951) is an American music director and conductor. He is currently the Music Director of the Des Moines Symphony in Des Moines, Iowa.
Early life and education
Joseph Giunta was born on May 8, 1951. He attended Northwestern University, Cook County, Illinois, where he studied conducting with Henry Mazer, John Paynter, William Smith, and Bernard Rubenstein.
Career
Giunta is currently the Music Director of the Des Moines Symphony. Highlights include a live recording of all nine Ludwig van Beethoven Symphonies and a recording with celebrated pianist Earl Wild on the Chesky Records label.
Before Des Moines Symphony, he held a similar position with the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony, Cedar Falls, Iowa, for fourteen seasons, and has guest conducted several orchestras of the world including the Chicago Symphony, the Minnesota Orchestra, the London Philharmonic, and the Philharmonia Orchestra of London.
In the United States, he has conducted the orchestras of Indianapolis, Nashville, North Carolina, Charlotte, Florida, and Vermont, among others. He has also conducted orchestras in Mexico, South America, Europe, Canada, Japan, and the United Kingdom.
In 2007, Giunta was invited to substitute for German conductor Kurt Masur at Theatro Municipal at the Orquesta Sinfonica Brasileira in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In 2010, he served as a judge at the BNDES International Piano Competition in Rio de Janeiro, also conducting several concerto rounds and the Grand Finale Concert.
Giunta also worked with Georg Solti, Carlo Maria Giulini, Leonard Bernstein, Eugene Ormandy and Klaus Tennstedt and has served as stand-by conductor for noted conductors/musicians Charles Dutoit, Erich Leinsdorf and Sir Neville Marriner.