About Kyle

American Conductor Kyle Dickson has built a reputation as an inspiring and compelling presence on the podium. The recipient of the 2021 Grant Park Music Festival Advocate for Arts Award, the Concert Artists Guild's Richard S. Weinert Award, and the Joel Revzen Conducting Fellowship, Dickson was a Salonen Conducting Fellow with the San Francisco Symphony and the Colburn School under the guidance of Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen.

Dickson has appeared as guest conductor with the symphony orchestras of Minnesota, Louisville, San Francisco, Oakland, Wichita, Detroit, Portland (ME) and the National Symphony (Washington, DC) among others. Recent highlights include appearances with the Festival Orchestra Napa and collaborations with acclaimed artists including Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Reena Esmail, Alexander Malofeev, and Carlos Sainz-Villegas.

In 2023, Dickson was named Assistant Conductor of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra and Conductor of the Memphis Symphony Youth Orchestra. He has been engaged by the New York Philharmonic, Minnesota Orchestra, St. Louis Symphony, and the San Diego Symphony as cover conductor as well as serving as Assistant Conductor for concerts with the NDR Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Orchestre de Paris, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. In 2021, Dickson was appointed Assistant Conductor of the Chicago Sinfonietta under the mentorship of Mei-Ann Chen and was selected as a Conducting Fellow at the 2021 National Orchestral Institute Conducting Academy directed by Marin Alsop and James Ross.

Passionate about music education and diverse representation in the arts, Dickson is recipient of a 2024 “Spirit of Detroit” Award, the Weissberg Prize, and has worked regularly with youth ensembles across the country including the Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles, Claremont Young Musicians Orchestra, Ravinia's El Sistema Program, Colburn School's Academy Virtuosi, and the Chicago Youth Symphony. He served as Assistant Conductor for Carnegie Hall’s 2022 NYO/NYO2 Tour and last season appeared as guest conductor with both the 2022 ILMEA District 9 Senior Orchestra Festival and the Chicago Youth In Music Festival Orchestra.

Trained as a violinist, Dickson was a prizewinner at the 2010 NANM National Concerto Competition and began his career as an orchestral and chamber musician. He was named the 2017 Hyde Park Youth Symphony Artist-In-Residence and has performed with the Grant Park Festival Orchestra and the Chicago Sinfonietta among others. Dickson appeared regularly as Concertmaster of the Chicago Composers Orchestra and was an avid chamber musician; serving on the Violin and Chamber Music faculty at Chicago's New Music School and holding residencies at Indiana University-South Bend and the United World College of South East Asia (Singapore). Additionally, his playing can be heard on albums by recording artists such as John Legend, Chance the Rapper, and Jessie J as a member of the Matt Jones/Recollective Orchestra.

Dickson studied conducting with Esa-Pekka Salonen, Victor Yampolsky, Mei-Ann Chen and Kevin Noe receiving degrees from the Colburn School and Northwestern University.