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Maestro Roderick Cox, who will guest conduct the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra, wants to inspire other Black musicians to think big

Oct 21, 2021

By Anders J. Hare, QCityMetro -- 

Maestro Roderick Cox's appearance with the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra could not have come at a better time. As the first guest conductor of CSO's 90th season -- and the first since the start of the pandemic -- Cox will bring his baton to the Queen City's Knight Theater, conducting the orchestra in its Brahms' Serenade No. 2 program on Oct. 29 and 30. 

The Berlin-based American conductor said he looks forward to working with the Charlotte orchestra for the first time.

"Anytime I'm invited to work with a new orchestra, the first thing that comes to mind is what music to perform and what is right for this particular orchestra, and to learn about this orchestra," Cox said. 

As one of a few African American conductors in the world, Cox has been called a "trailblazer" and "a conductor who will be in the vanguard."

Winner of the 2018 Sir Georg Solti Conducting Award, one of his primary goals is to inspire young musicians of color to break through spaces they don't often touch. In 2018, he launched the Roderick Cox Music Initiative, a scholarship program that aims to nurture the next generation of musicians of color. The effort has resulted in seven students receiving scholarships in 2020, and nine in 2021.

Cox wants to help young musicians find their passions through music -- just has he established his.

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