South Shore Symphony

Adam Glaser is the Music Director of the professional-caliber Juilliard Pre-College Orchestras and Director of Orchestras and Associate Professor of Music at Hofstra University.  The 2026/27 season marks his fourth year as Music Director and Conductor of Long Island’s renowned South Shore Symphony.

Recent engagements include the New Jersey Symphony, where Glaser filled in last-minute for Music Director Xian Zhang in critically acclaimed subscription concerts featuring violinist Hilary Hahn, Musical America’s 2023 Artist of the Year.  Previous posts and engagements include Principal Conductor of the NYU Orchestras and the Usdan Center for the Arts, Visiting Professor of Conducting and Interim Director of Orchestras at the Hartt School of Music, a nine-concert residency with the Symphonia Boca Raton, performances with the orchestras of Wheeling, Illinois and Victoria (British Columbia), and collaborations with such distinguished artists as Itzhak Perlman, Joyce Yang, Conrad Tao, Maxim Lando, Vijay Gupta, Timo Andres, Monica Yunus, Robin Zeh and Areta Zhulla.  Notable conservatory and youth orchestra engagements include the Interlochen Philharmonic, Purchase Symphony Orchestra, All-Eastern Honors Orchestra and multiple All-State Honors Orchestras.  Selected awards include the American-Austrian Foundation’s Karajan Fellowship for Young Conductors which sponsored his residence at the Salzburg Festival and the Vienna Philharmonic’s Attergau Orchestra Institute.  Earlier in his career, Glaser was selected as a finalist for assistant conductor positions at the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Seattle Symphony.

An established composer, Glaser’s works have been performed by over 50 orchestras throughout the U.S. and Canada, including the orchestras of Philadelphia, St. Louis, Baltimore, Atlanta, Milwaukee, Utah, Vancouver, Illinois and Toronto.  Commissions include his Passacaglia for string orchestra, Launch for orchestra and chorus, and an arrangement of Hatikvah for string orchestra and children’s chorus.  Glaser opera credits include his New York City Opera debut conducting the world premiere of Ted Rosenthal’s Dear Erich, La Tragédie de Carmen (Bizet/Constant) with Curtis Opera Theater, Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, Gluck’s L’Ivrogne Corrige and Schubert’s Die Verschworenen with Hofstra Opera Theater, and Mozart’s Bastien und Bastienne with Ridotto Opera Theater.  At the Usdan Center for the Arts, he led several multi-disciplinary performances including a collaboration with the Usdan Center’s ballet company, chorus, vocal soloists and orchestra in selections from Orff’s Carmina Burana.

An active jazz pianist, composer and recording artist, Glaser has released two albums: Wide Awake, with the Adam Glaser Trio, and a solo album, Excursions, featuring 15 original contemporary jazz instrumentals.  Notable collaborations include Jane Monheit, Chris Lewis, Justin Faulkner, Tony Miceli, Larry McKenna, Don Liuzzi.  In 2024, he was a featured guest artist in the Curtis Institute of Music’s Intersections II: Third Stream/Fourth Stream concert, a special event fusing jazz, classical and bluegrass curated and hosted by Philadelphia Orchestra Principal Timpanist Don Liuzzi.  As founding members of Phil Orch Jazz, Glaser and Liuzzi have collaborated and toured with this unique group of Philadelphia Orchestra musicians, appearing at such venues as World Cafe Live and the Kimmel Center Commonwealth Stage in Philadelphia, the Kaplan Penthouse at Lincoln Center in New York, and the Bravo! Vail Music Festival in Colorado.  Equally at home across the pop/contemporary spectrum, he has collaborated with groups ranging from the bluegrass-inspired DePue Brothers Band to world-music/fusion group Batik.  Following several years as a consultant and marketing manager for Fortune 500 companies, Glaser maintains a keen interest in commercial music, audio branding and the use of music and sound throughout the business world. 

Profoundly committed to arts education and community engagement, Glaser is the creator and host of The Composer’s Paintbrush, a series in which he leads audiences through an exploration of the creative techniques behind musical masterworks, previously presented by New York’s Morgan Library & Museum.  

Glaser earned graduate degrees in orchestral conducting from the Curtis Institute of Music and the University of Michigan, an MBA from the Ross School of Business (University of Michigan), a BA from the University of Pennsylvania in English, Afro-American Studies and Music, and a diploma in composition from the Juilliard Pre-College Division.  His primary conducting teachers include Otto-Werner Mueller and Kenneth Kiesler, and his master class teachers include Christoph Eschenbach, Helmut Rilling and Gianluigi Gelmetti. 

For more information, please visit www.adamglaser.com.

Critical Acclaim

“The less-is-more philosophy stuck with Glaser…He set down the delicately sustained pianissimo of the strings in the Allegro moderato with a light hand and followed with solid, clean phrasing and articulation. The orchestra’s secondary role allowed [Hilary] Hahn to embark on clear, intelligible musical language with grace and eloquence.” – Courtney Smith, NJArts.net (New Jersey Symphony Orchestra)

“Adam Glaser led the chamber orchestra…in a sinewy and carefully balanced sound.” – Philadelphia City Paper (Curtis Opera Theater)

“From the pit (located behind the stage), conductor Adam Glaser managed the proceedings exceedingly well, especially when one considers that the singers were not facing him throughout the evening.” – Opera Wire (New York City Opera)

“The musical values were high, with conductor Adam Glaser and the band giving a polished performance, and the young ensemble giving it their all.” – Seen and Heard International (New York City Opera)

“…a magical second outing by the very gifted Glaser … Excursions will cement Glaser’s place on the international jazz map with his panache of deep musical understanding, wide-ranging styles, and skills as a performer.” – The Jazz Word