Ojai Music Festival's artistic director to step down in 2019

Staff reports

Thomas W. Morris announced Friday that he will retire from his role as the artistic director of the Ojai Music Festival.

Thomas W. Morris, shown at a 2013 Ojai Music Festival Meeting at Libbey Bowl, will leave his job as the festival's artistic director after the 2019 event.

Morris will leave after the 2019 festival. The festival, which began in 1947, takes place for four days each June and brings innovative artists and music fans from around the world to Ojai.

His retirement will cap a 16-year career as the festival’s artistic director. 

Morris, who took over as artistic director in 2004, has consistently expanded the festival’s programming boundaries and scope, festival officials said in a news release.

He has invited a broad roster of artists to the festival and built connections across musical communities. Musical directors who have worked with him include Kent Nagano, Oliver Knussen, Robert Spano, Dawn Upshaw and Peter Sellars.

Morris also expanded the footprint of the Ojai Music Festival with events like Ojai at Berkeley, a partnership with Cal Performances now in its eighth year, and a partnership with the Aldeburgh Festival in England. 

“Each year, I find new possibilities to meet the demands of our supremely curious audiences. As Ojai has quite a legacy, my job has been to build on the Ojai aesthetic of discovery, adventure and engagement, creating an environment where great artists can experiment, and perhaps enter a new stage in their own artistic development ...” Morris said in a written statement.

Chairman of the Board David Nygren added his praise.

“Words are simply insufficient in expressing our deep gratitude for Tom’s innumerable contributions not only to the festival but to the entire field. ... The festival is recipient of a lifetime of Tom’s work, connections, creativity and expressive discipline ...” Nygren said.

Morris told the festival’s board of directors of his decision to retire in 2019 at a recent board meeting, and a search committee is being formed to find a successor.

Morris, a percussionist and the longtime chief executive of the Cleveland Orchestra and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, is a consultant, lecturer, teacher and writer and the current vice chairman of the board of directors of the Interlochen Center for the Arts.

The 72nd Ojai Music Festival is planned for June 7-10 with violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja as music director.