US opera chief calls time on four decades at the top

US opera chief calls time on four decades at the top

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norman lebrecht

October 06, 2014

David Gockley has announced he’ll retire in 2016, after ten years at the head of San Francisco Opera. Before that he ran Houston Grand Opera for 33 years. David Gockley will be 73 when he steps down.

david Gockley

Comments

  • Ks. Christopher Robson says:

    End of an era for a relatively unsung hero. What he did all those years in Houston, especially, was remarkable. He really put HGO on the map as a major force for high quality international level opera productions as well as enthusiastically promoting American opera and composers.
    I am biased, perhaps, as he is someone I always liked on a professional as well as personal level. But he has had a great career and contributed so much to opera in the USA, and in my humble opinion deserves much more credit publicly than he has received.
    Wishing him luck in whatever he does after retirement which, if he is like other Intendants, will probably mean that he will find some niche somewhere to pass on his knowledge in the years to come.
    Toi Toi David 🙂

  • Roberto says:

    He was also great in San Francisco. It will be hard to replace him. I hope that it won’t be anyone like Pamela Rosenberg.

  • Novagerio says:

    Talk about a well-merited and highly succesful manager!! Boy,they don’t make those anymore! Mr.Gockley is certainly in the same list as….I can only mention two: Sir Rudolf Bing and Kurt Herbert Adler (another long-time succesful manager from the SF Opera!)

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