Vladimir Kulenovic

Recognized as “a conductor with an uncommon talent” and honored as “Chicagoan of the Year in Classical Music” by the Chicago Tribune, Vladimir Kulenovic has emerged as one of the finest conductors of his generation.  Winner of the Sir Georg Solti Foundation’s highest conducting award, “Solti Conducting Fellow,” Mr. Kulenovic continues to attract attention from prominent orchestras worldwide.  His upcoming engagements include his return to Indianapolis Symphony and the Florida Orchestra, and a tour in Europe with the Württembergisches Kammerorchester Heilbronn that will conclude at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.

In the United States, Mr. Kulenovic has conducted symphony orchestras of San Francisco, Chicago, Houston, Indianapolis, Utah, Jacksonville, Omaha, Alabama, Illinois, Columbus, Grand Rapids,  the philharmonic orchestras of Naples and Oklahoma City, and the Florida and Louisville Orchestras, among others. Festival appearances include Aspen, Cabrillo/CA and Round Top/TX.

International appearances include performances with the National Arts Centre Orchestra/Ottawa, Beethoven-Orchester/Bonn, Leipziger Symphonieorchester, Württembergische Philharmonie Reutlingen, Deutsche Kammerakademie Neuss am Rhein, Basque National Orchestra, Orquesta Sinfónica de España, Orquesta Classica de Santa Cecilia/Madrid, Bilkent Symphony, Taipei Symphony, and the Slovenian RTV Symphony, the philharmonic orchestras of Malaysia, Jalisco, Romania, Slovenia, Belgrade, Zagreb and Macedonia, the renowned festivals of Kuhmo, Salzburg, and Verbier and the Macedonia National Opera and Ballet.

Kulenovic has held permanent conducting positions worldwide. As the seventh Music Director of the Lake Forest Symphony (greater Chicago area), his leadership achieved unprecedented growth reflected in the increased level of artistic excellence, first-ever commercial recordings, new concert formats and budget and audience expansion. The consistent critical acclaim while with the orchestra included recognition as the “2019 Orchestra of the Year” and “2019 Conductor of the Year” by the Illinois Arts Council. Under the leadership of Mr. Kulenovic, the LFS made their first commercial CD recordings and received GRAMMY nominations in 2018 and 2022. As Associate Conductor of the Utah Symphony and Utah Opera, he conducted over 500 performances, including Masterworks, Pops, Family, Holiday, Education, operatic and Deer Valley Festival summer performances. Other previous positions include Resident Conductor of the Belgrade Philharmonic and Principal Conductor of the Kyoto International Summer Festival in Japan.

In 2013, Mr. Kulenovic was one of six young conductors chosen by the League of American Orchestras for the Bruno Walter National Conducting Preview. Other prizes and awards include the Mendelssohn-Bartholdy Fellowship at the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchester (where he assisted the late Kurt Masur), Solti Foundation Career Assistance Grants (from 2011-2014), the Bruno Walter Memorial Award and Charles Schiff Award for Excellence (Juilliard, 2011), and the Second Grand Prix at the Rubinstein International Piano Competition in Paris.

Kulenovic’s growing discography includes releases of Liquid Melancholy and Sisters in Song (Cedille Records), Dreams of a Sleeping World (Tōrō Records), and an album of Beethoven and Bruch Violin Concertos with violinist Stefan Milenkovich and the Slovenian RTV Symphony. Kulenovic holds graduate degrees in conducting from The Juilliard School, where he studied with James DePriest, and the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, where he studied with Gustav Meier.