Oregon Symphony Conductor Bio

Norman Leyden

Laureate Associate Conductor

The 2008/09 season marks Norman Leyden’s fourth as the Oregon Symphony’s Laureate Associate Conductor. He retired in 2004 after 34 seasons as Music Director of the Oregon Symphony Pops series and 29 seasons as its Associate Conductor.

A graduate of Yale University in 1938, Leyden later earned a doctoral degree at Columbia University. During World War II he served with Maj. Glenn Miller’s legendary Air Force Band in England and France. In the post-war years he arranged for many prominent radio, television and recording artists, including Frank Sinatra, Mitch Miller, Sarah Vaughan and Tony Bennett.

In addition to his busy schedule of classical, pops and family concerts with the Oregon Symphony, Leyden has guest-conducted more than 40 leading American orchestras, including the Boston Pops, the Minnesota Orchestra and the Pittsburgh, St. Louis, San Francisco and National symphonies. His library holds more than 1,200 special symphony arrangements.

In October 2007 Leyden celebrated his 90th birthday with a big band concert, and in April 2008 he rejoined the Oregon Symphony for four sold-out performances of A Sentimental Journey. On May 25 and 26, 2009, he will again conduct the Oregon Symphony and soloists Reneé Cleland, Susannah Mars and Richard Weidlich for Sentimental Journey II.