Marietta Cheng

Interviewed on CNN as a prominent woman conductor, Marietta Cheng is the Music Director and Conductor of The Orchestra of the Southern Finger Lakes, one of the most widely acclaimed orchestras in the Southern Tier of New York. This new regional orchestra, which draws its extraordinary musicians from a two hundred mile radius, has engendered excitement for its bravura performances of Mahler, Strauss, Bruckner and Respighi in its short two-year history. Soloists have included: Corey Cerovsek, Juliette Kang, David Kim, Scott St. John, Stephen Doane, Bion Tsang, Gail Niwa, Walter Ponce and Wu Han. Ms. Cheng is also the Conductor of the excellent symphonic Chorus of the Southern Finger Lakes. In addition, she conducts The Orchestra of the Southern Finger Lakes regularly in pops concerts. From 1986 to 1995, she was the Music Director and Conductor of the Corning Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus, chosen for the position from a field of 140 other conductors. She is also a full professor of music at Colgate University and Conductor of the Colgate University Orchestra and Chamber Orchestra. Committed to the major orchestral repertoire, with an educational model of students and professionals, the Colgate University Orchestra, under Ms. Cheng's baton, is one of the best liberal arts college orchestras in the country.

As a choral conductor, Marietta Cheng was for four years on the conducting faculty of the famed Aspen Music Festival where she taught conducting, oversaw the choral assignments for the entire music school and prepared choruses there for luminaries like Robert Shaw, Jorge Mester and John Nelson. The Brahms Requiem performance for which she prepared the chorus for John Nelson was reviewed as the best choral performance at Aspen in thirty years. She was also the Conductor of the the Colgate University Chorus and Chamber Singers from 1976-93 with three European tours and four recordings to her credit. In addition, she has been the conductor of the semi-professional chorus, the Syracuse Vocal Ensemble, which premiered new works. Ms. Cheng has conducted over thirty oratorios, and for example, has conducted Handel's Messiah in nine different performances.

As a pianist, she has been a soloist with the Boston Pops orchestra under Arthur Fiedler. She performs chamber music frequently, having often collaborated with the Manhattan String Quartet, with the Southern Tier Chamber Players and at Colgate University.

Ms. Cheng has been a national spokesman for issues on women. She was chosen as one of a unique group of one hundred women leaders from across the U.S. to add her voice to Lifetime Television's National Summit on Women in the 21st Century in Washington D.C.. She was one of ten to be interviewed individually for Linda Ellerbee's Take a Break segments on Lifetime Television. She authored an article on women in music which appeared on the Op/Ed Page of the New York Times, April 19, 1997 and has given many radio interviews, including a half-hour segment on WNYC, the National Public Radio Station for NYC, New Jersey and Connecticut.

She has held many positions at colleges, conservatories and universities. From 1983-86, she was Conductor of the University Symphony Orchestra at Binghamton University. She was Associate Professor of Music and conductor of both the orchestral and choral programs at Haverford and Bryn Mawr Colleges. In addition, she has conducted at Radcliffe College, Smith College and she has twice taught at the New England Conservatory of Music Summer School.

She has conducted over 26 concerts for the All-State programs of the Music Educators National Conference. Among them are the annual festivals for the All-Eastern Orchestra, the Pennsylvania All-State Orchestra, the New York State String Orchestra, the Pennsylvania All-State Chorus, and the New York State Women's Chorus.

"She is a trailblazer and role model...She has done wonders. How fortunate we are to be blessed with the multi-talented Marietta Cheng." (Corning Leader)

Ms. Cheng holds degrees from Smith College and the New England Conservatory of Music and has studied at Aspen, Interlochen, Chautauqua, Ambler and the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory.