The Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra's music director will hand the baton to a new director in 2013, the orchestra announced Thursday.
Markand Thakar, the orchestra's director since 2001, announced his decision during the orchestra's annual meeting Wednesday at the Kitchi Gammi Club, orchestra Executive Director Andrew Berryhill said in a news release.
A letter to friends of the orchestra from outgoing board President Helena Jackson said Thakar had approached the board a couple of months ago to make plans for a smooth leadership transition.
Thakar will conduct 10 concerts during the 2010-2011 season, including all seven classical/masterworks performances. During the following two seasons, he will conduct about half of the performances. Guest conductors will be engaged for the other performances as part of the orchestra's search for a new music director.
His resignation will take effect on June 30, 2013.
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The decision surprised and saddened Thakar's colleague, Matthew Faerber, director of the DSSO Chorus during Thakar's entire time as orchestra conductor.
"I had heard some rumors," Faerber said. "I had hoped he would be with the symphony as long as I am."
Before coming to Duluth, Thakar had been more used to working with professional vocalists, Faerber said. But he adjusted well to the amateurs who make up the DSSO Chorus. "He has been very good to the chorus," Faerber said. "He has been great to work with."
Thakar, the eighth director in the orchestra's 78-year history, will leave with the third-longest tenure of all its music directors. Thakar also is music director of the Baltimore Chamber Orchestra and is co-director of the graduate conducting program at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore. He lives in Baltimore with his wife, violinist Victoria Chiang, and their son, Oliver.
In a statement, Thakar said: "This has been one of the most difficult decisions I have ever made, but with the orchestra performing at historically high levels, with the audiences large and enthusiastic, and with the classical concerts flourishing financially, now seems like a most opportune time to take the plunge."
Thakar could not be reached for further comment.
Berryhill said it was far too early to speculate about who the next music director might be. The process needs to be determined by the board, he said, but no doubt orchestra members will be included in the search committee, and there will be a nationwide search.
It's not unusual in the orchestra world for a conductor's departure to be announced a few years ahead of time, Berryhill said. "We don't like surprises. ... You want to have a smooth transition."
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Thakar was chosen after a nationwide search, Faerber noted. "It's quite a position to assume," he said. "It's a very high-level orchestra."
Thakar will lead the orchestra in two free concerts this summer: July 3 at Grand Casino Hinckley and July 4 at Bayfront Festival Park in Duluth.
