[ad_1]
Charlotte Symphony music director Kwamé Ryan should be used to making history with the orchestra by now.
When he was named its new conductor in 2023, he became the first person of color tapped to lead the nearly century-old Charlotte Symphony. Ryan made history again in the fall, when he picked up a Grammy nomination for Best Opera Recording for conducting the Houston Grand Opera’s production of “Intelligence” by composer Jake Heggie.
In doing so, Ryan became the first Charlotte Symphony music director to earn a Grammy nomination. And this Sunday, Feb. 1, at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, he’ll have a chance to make history again if he wins a Grammy to be the first CSO maestro to claim a Grammy.
Ryan is the 12th conductor for the Charlotte Symphony, which was founded in 1932. The first Grammys ceremony was held in 1959.
In a recent interview, Ryan told The Charlotte Observer how he learned about the nomination.
Back in November when the Grammy nominations came out, Ryan was in the middle of rehearsal for an opera in New York when Heggie texted him a screenshot of the Grammy website. Ryan then leaned over to one of his music staff and whispered, “I just got nominated for a Grammy.”
Growing up on the Caribbean island of Trinidad, Ryan would watch the Grammys on TV. Then, as now, classical categories were not televised.
“I watched it because I enjoy pop music as much as I enjoy classical music. I have very, very eclectic tastes,” Ryan said. “But I never thought that I’d be nominated for one and ever sit in that auditorium.”
The Grammys and the opera category
The Best Opera Recording award goes to the conductor, album producers, principal soloists, and the composer and librettist, if applicable, of a world premiere opera recording.
Heggie’s “Intelligence” tells the Civil War-era story about a pair of unlikely spies, a woman from a prominent Confederate family and a woman born into slavery who served that family.
In a November statement when the nominations came out, Heggie said, “This nomination means the world to everyone who poured their hearts into ‘Intelligence.’ … It is deeply moving to see our premiere cast and Kwamé Ryan honored this way. I hope the album continues to spark conversation about who gets remembered, and why.”
The other nominees in the category are: “An American Soldier”, “Adoration,” “Trade & Mary Motorhead” and “Grounded.”
The televised portion of the Grammys start at 8 p.m. Sunday on CBS and streaming on Paramount+.
Kwamé Ryan at the Grammys
This will be a busy weekend for Ryan.
He is conducting a Prokofiev and Schumann concert at Knight Theater in uptown Charlotte on Friday and Saturday night. But for Sunday afternoon’s performance, resident conductor Christopher James Lees will take up the baton since Ryan will be in Los Angeles by then for the Grammys.
More arts coverage
Want to see more stories like this? Sign up here for our free, award-winning “Inside Charlotte Arts” newsletter: charlotteobserver.com/newsletters. You can join our Facebook group, “Inside Charlotte Arts,” by going here: facebook.com/groups/insidecharlottearts. And all of our 2025-26 Fall Arts Guide story can be found here: charlotteobserver.com/topics/charlotte-fall-arts-guide.
This story was originally published January 30, 2026 at 5:00 AM.
[ad_2]
Adam Bell
Source link