By Charles Baran

To hear Scott Flavin talk about classical music is as exciting as listening to a thirty-piece orchestra play Beethoven’s 6th Symphony. To say Scott is passionate about his craft is an understatement. He’s a violinist, a professor at the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami, a composer, a writer, a chamber musician, and, as of this year, the Resident Conductor of Broward County’s Symphony of the Americas (SOTA).

Born and raised in Boston, Scott grew up in a family of musicians. His mother was a cellist and his father was a skilled Wagnerian tenor. At the age of five, Scott’s parents took him to a performance of the aforementioned Beethoven’s 6th, and he was immediately hooked. “I want to play the violin,” he happily announced to his parents who could not have been more overjoyed that their son had found his calling.

Years of study followed, first in Boston, then at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. Following graduation, Scott secured his first professional job with the Rochester Philharmonic where he remained for several years until the “lake-effect” snow syndrome took its toll on him and he hightailed it to sunny Florida. That was thirty years ago and Scott couldn’t be happier living among the palm trees and ocean breezes.

Since arriving in South Florida, Scott has built a successful career working with the biggest and best classical music and opera companies of the area. For twenty-years, Scott was the Concertmaster at Florida Grand Opera (FGO) where he met and worked with internationally renowned conductor Pablo Mielgo, who is now the Artistic and Music Director of the Symphony of the Americas (SOTA).  Two and a half years ago, Maestro Mielgo asked Scott to join him at SOTA in the role of Lead Violinist and Concertmaster. Scott jumped at the chance. “Pablo is a superlative musician; a great artist and he has a great vision for the orchestra. He knows how to connect with an audience. I love working with him.”

Scott feels strongly about connecting. “Making music accessible to audiences, and not playing down to them is what I strive for.” When asked about the music of today, Scott is excited to witness the wide diversity of talented individuals creating new classical works, especially the many women and black composers appearing on the scene. He cites Jessie Montgomery as a prime example. Personally, Scott enjoys listening to all types of music; from Bach’s Chaconne—his all-time favorite piece— to Beethoven to Bernstein to 90’s hip-hop. He’s even explored the work of Amsterdam’s Death Metal— thanks to his daughter.

This past November, Scott made his debut as SOTA’s Resident Conductor with the successful Henry Mancini concerts at Broward’s Amaturo Theater. Scott loves Mancini and is no stranger to the composer’s oeuvre—having been the Resident Conductor for the Henry Mancini Institute at the University of Miami for the past 17 years. It was Steven Haines, SOTA’s Executive Director who approached Scott and said, “With your knowledge and tenure at the Henry Mancini Institute, we should celebrate Mancini and highlight his prolific body of work.”

As for the remaining exciting programs ahead in SOTA’s 2024/25 season, Scott will be back on the podium on Tuesday, February 25, 2025 for an evening celebrating American composers. The concert will consist of Aaron Copeland’s Rodeo, George Gershwin’s American in Paris Suite, and a violin concerto by Erich Wolfgang Korngold which will feature 19-year-old violinist Hina Khuong-Huu, a student of renown musician Itzhak Perlman. The spectacular evening will open with an exciting new piece by 52-year-old American pianist and composer, Gabriela Lena Frank.

Then, on March 11 and 16, Maestro Mielgo will be taking up the baton for Shostakovich’s Leningrad, long considered one of the 20th Century’s greatest symphonies.

And in May, Luke Frazier, SOTA’s newly appointed Resident Pops Conductor, will present Broadway Showstoppers! The Leading Men. Luke, a welcome addition to the SOTA family, created the American Pops Concert series in Washington DC. An extraordinary conductor and musician, South Florida audiences are thrilled to have him in the neighborhood.

South Florida’s Symphony of the Americas, now in its 37th year, continues to bring the finest classical and pops music to Broward County audiences.