Charlottesville Symphony taps Rous

Benjamin Rous, who has served as resident conductor of the Virginia Symphony since 2010, has been named music director of the Charlottesville Symphony at the University of Virginia.

He succeeds Kate Tamarkin, who retired this season after 11 years with the ensemble.

Rous, who is a violinist, violist and keyboard player, was guest principal second violinist of the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, working under the direction of Claudio Abbado and Daniel Harding, and performed with the Arcturus Chamber Ensemble in the Boston area. He has guest-conducted a number of orchestras, including the National Symphony Orchestra of Washington, the Buffalo Philharmonic and the National Arts Centre Orchestra of Ottawa. He is the faculty conductor of the Greenwood Music Camp in Massachusetts.

With the Virginia Symphony, Rous has conducted pops and young people’s concerts as well as programs in the Hampton Roads orchestra’s classical series.

A graduate of Harvard University and the University of Michigan, Rous will join the University of Virginia music faculty as he takes over the Charlottesville orchestra.