Internationally recognized for his deep musicianship and passionate communication, Sameer Patel is one of his generation’s most exciting conductors. This season, Sameer makes debuts with the Grand Rapids Symphony, Sarasota Orchestra, North Carolina Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic, and the Florida Orchestra, as well as return engagements with the Knoxville Symphony and La Jolla Symphony. Recent performances include Puccini’s Tosca with Houston’s Opera in the Heights, as well as symphonic concerts with the orchestras of Toronto, St. Louis, Detroit, San Diego, New Jersey, Phoenix, Savannah, and Sacramento. He has also appeared with the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C., the Pacific Symphony, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, and the Chicago Sinfonietta. Abroad, Sameer has conducted performances in Europe with the Orchestra Sinfonica di Sanremo, the Orchestra Giovanile Italiana, and the Leipziger Sinfonieorchester. Born in Michigan to Indian immigrant parents from East Africa, Sameer studied at the University of Michigan and furthered his training across Europe with some of the greatest conductors of our time, including Gianandrea Noseda, Daniele Gatti, David Zinman, Paavo Järvi, and the late conductors Kurt Masur and Bernard Haitink.