August 29, 2025 | Written by Lauren Ross
The Shepherd School of Music orchestra department is highly regarded as one of the top pre-professional orchestral programs in North America. In fact, recent research shows that the Shepherd School leads the country in its ratio of alumni in professional orchestras to current student enrollment. Shepherd alumni can be found across nearly all of the nation’s major orchestras*, including the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Houston Symphony Orchestra, and many more.
The school’s orchestra program dates back to a much earlier chapter in 1955, when the Rice Chamber Orchestra was formed, comprising students and community members. Though modest in size, it made a mark touring Europe twice during the 1970s.
When the Shepherd School officially opened in 1975, the foundation had already been laid for the school’s first student orchestra, the Shepherd Sinfonia, spearheaded by founding dean Samuel Jones. At the same time, the Campanile Orchestra—still active today—was created as a community orchestra and training ground for Shepherd student conductors.
By 1983, the growth in student enrollment made the creation of the larger Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra possible. Through the 1980s, the ensemble performed under a rotating roster of guest conductors, including Benjamin Zander, Gisèle Ben-Dor, and Uri Mayer, at major venues across the city, including Houston’s First Baptist Church, Wortham Center, and Jones Hall. Yet although Shepherd’s orchestral reputation grew steadily through the 1980s, the absence of a dedicated hall and resident music director left its future uncertain.
With the opening of Alice Pratt Brown Hall in 1991 and the appointment of Larry Rachleff as the Walter Kris Hubert Professor of Orchestral Conducting, the orchestra program entered a golden era. Rachleff transformed the ensembles, and under his leadership, the Shepherd School Symphony Orchestra and Shepherd School Chamber Orchestra, established in 1993, quickly rose to national prominence.
For three decades, Rachleff had an immeasurable impact on the lives and careers of countless musicians, many of whom went on to hold leading positions in orchestras around the world. Rachleff’s former students include world-renowned conductors Cristian Măcelaru (’06, ’08), Music Director of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, and James Gaffigan (’03), General Music Director of Komische Oper Berlin.
Rachleff’s passing in 2022 was deeply felt across the classical music community. Rachleff is remembered as a dynamic, once-in-a-generation maestro who drew the highest level of artistry from his students, and helped elevate the Shepherd School to world-class stature.
From 2022 onwards, a distinguished roster of guest conductors guided the orchestra, maintaining its standard of excellence while the school looked toward its next chapter. This new era begins in the 2025/26 season, as acclaimed Grammy-nominated and Emmy-award-winning conductor Miguel Harth-Bedoya steps into the role of Distinguished Resident Director of Orchestras and Professor of Conducting.
With a career spanning more than 35 years, Harth-Bedoya brings a wealth of experience and artistic vision to the Shepherd School. Deeply committed to mentoring the next generation of musicians, Harth-Bedoya is poised to build on the school’s rich orchestral legacy while guiding students into an exciting new chapter.
Harth-Beodya shares, “I’m thrilled and honored to join the Shepherd School. Throughout my career, I’ve championed the development of the next generation of musical talent. The chance to do that at such a renowned institution is truly exciting. Together, we’ll inspire and challenge each other to excel and create unique and transformative opportunities to prepare musicians for the 21st century.”
Learn more about the Shepherd School’s history as it celebrates 50 years.
*Orchestras with over five Shepherd alumni on their roster include the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and more. Plus, orchestras with over fifteen Shepherd alumni include the Houston Symphony, Seattle Symphony, and Minnesota Orchestra!