Colton Conducting Fellow Jessica Rivero Altarriba looks back on her time with the New Jersey Symphony in NJArts.net profile
Jessica Rivero Altarriba, the New Jersey Symphony’s inaugural Colton Conducting Fellow, will be wrapping up her one-year tenure on August 15 when she conducts the preview concert for the 2024–25 season titled Classical Favorites: Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky and More! While discussing the upcoming concert to Courtney Smith of NJArts.net, she also looked back on her time with the New Jersey Symphony and how the Symphony’s fellowship program has transformed her as a conductor.
Altarriba’s time with New Jersey Symphony, she says, “will always have a special place in my heart because it’s my first experience trying to discover the internal world of an orchestra — which is not only what piece you are conducting but the thousands of other things happening at the same time to make the concert happen — and these are things you have to learn by fire, by being put on the spot ... This fellowship is phenomenal because you have a comfort and a safety zone to make mistakes. As a young conductor, you always have a lot of pressure about not failing because you worry you won’t be called on again. At New Jersey Symphony, the idea is more like, ‘It’s okay!’ There’s a supportive system in place. I feel extremely honored and privileged of the trust I received from the orchestra, because at the end of the day, the musicians are going to be the best teachers for a young conductor.”
Jessica Rivero Altarriba to NJArts.net