Full coverage of Rice at the 2024 Olympics
Grammy Award-winning conductor Cristian Măcelaru, an alumnus of Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, will direct the Orchestre National de France during the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics Friday. Măcelaru has served as the orchestra’s music director since September 2020.
“I never thought in my life that I would have this opportunity,” Măcelaru told a television station in his home country of Romania. “It’s a very beautiful thing because it’s an event where we all seem to forget the things that separate us and remember the beauty of the things that help us come together.”
Information about exactly what Măcelaru and his orchestra will perform has been tightly guarded, but Houston viewers will be able to watch the live broadcast on NBC at 12:30 p.m. Friday. It will be rebroadcast at 6:30 p.m.
“We are incredibly proud and excited to see Cristian Măcelaru, one of our distinguished alumni, directing the Orchestre National de France at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games,” said Shepherd School Dean Matthew Loden. “Cristi’s remarkable achievements and his ability to bring people together through the universal language of music exemplify the excellence and spirit of the Shepherd School. This moment is a testament to the dedication and talent nurtured within our community, and we look forward to celebrating his continued success on such an international stage.”
Măcelaru, who has been heralded for his “animated energy,” studied with the late Larry Rachleff and received degrees from Rice in 2006 and 2008. He has credited the Shepherd School with equipping him with the necessary skills to excel in his career, which has featured numerous major appointments and honors. In 2020, Măcelaru won a Grammy Award for his work conducting Wynton Marsalis’ violin concerto with Nicola Benedetti and the Philadelphia Orchestra, and most recently, he was appointed the new music director for the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, a post that will begin in the 2024-25 season. Măcelaru also serves as artistic director of the George Enescu Festival and Competition, artistic director and principal conductor of the Interlochen Center for the Arts’ World Youth Symphony Orchestra, music director and conductor of the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music and chief conductor of the WDR Sinfonieorchester in Cologne, Germany.
Măcelaru has made several guest conductor appearances at the Shepherd School since graduating and plans to return as soon as next spring. In May, he hosted Traveling Owls in Paris for a behind-the-scenes look at a Orchestre National de France rehearsal and performance (video below).