Christian Chalifour
Christian Chalifour has been a driving force in our desert musical community for more than two decades since he arrived here from Japan in 1994.
Born in Syracuse NY, his earliest inspiration came from a backstage visit with Leonard Bernstein following one of the New York Philharmonic's famous "Young People's Concerts" in 1960.
Christian's first call to the podium came in 1985 when he was asked to assemble an orchestra for back-to-back productions of The Music Man and A Chorus Line in Anchorage, Alaska, where he also spent his high school and college years.
In 1995, Christian was handed the baton for Coachella Valley Symphony by founder Tom Mancini, and served as music director & conductor for both Coachella Valley Symphony and their newly formed Buddy Rogers Youth Symphony for the next fifteen years, until he stepped down in 2010, to take a step back and decide about his next venture, which fortunately became Desert Chamber Orchestra.
Concurrent with his years with the symphonies, Christian has also been busy with our musical theater community, and has served as music director for many productions including South Pacific, Annie, Oliver!, The Wizard of Oz, Peter Pan, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Cinderella, Fiddler on the Roof, Big River, Beauty and the Beast, Oklahoma!, Amahl and the Night Visitors, A Swingin' Nutcracker and more.
Maestro Chalifour is also a professional harpist, specializing in pop & jazz, and has toured most of the world since his path crossed that of the late legendary Lloyd Lindroth in 1977 in Alaska. You can see and hear more of Christian's "Affairs of the Harp" at his website: christianchalifour.weebly.com.
Christian Chalifour has been a driving force in our desert musical community for more than two decades since he arrived here from Japan in 1994.
Born in Syracuse NY, his earliest inspiration came from a backstage visit with Leonard Bernstein following one of the New York Philharmonic's famous "Young People's Concerts" in 1960.
Christian's first call to the podium came in 1985 when he was asked to assemble an orchestra for back-to-back productions of The Music Man and A Chorus Line in Anchorage, Alaska, where he also spent his high school and college years.
In 1995, Christian was handed the baton for Coachella Valley Symphony by founder Tom Mancini, and served as music director & conductor for both Coachella Valley Symphony and their newly formed Buddy Rogers Youth Symphony for the next fifteen years, until he stepped down in 2010, to take a step back and decide about his next venture, which fortunately became Desert Chamber Orchestra.
Concurrent with his years with the symphonies, Christian has also been busy with our musical theater community, and has served as music director for many productions including South Pacific, Annie, Oliver!, The Wizard of Oz, Peter Pan, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Cinderella, Fiddler on the Roof, Big River, Beauty and the Beast, Oklahoma!, Amahl and the Night Visitors, A Swingin' Nutcracker and more.
Maestro Chalifour is also a professional harpist, specializing in pop & jazz, and has toured most of the world since his path crossed that of the late legendary Lloyd Lindroth in 1977 in Alaska. You can see and hear more of Christian's "Affairs of the Harp" at his website: christianchalifour.weebly.com.
