About

Andrew Cyr

Artistic Director


Grammy-nominated conductor Andrew Cyr is a leader in the rapidly growing contemporary music scene. His enthusiasm for connecting the outstanding musicians and composers of the new generation to today's audiences led him to create Metropolis Ensemble in 2006.

Cyr has appeared in performances at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, The Kimmel Center, (Le) Poisson Rouge, and, in 2008, made his debut with the Wordless Music Series, sharing the stage with indie-rock sensation Deerhoof and conducting a remix of The Rite of Spring to a live audience of 10,000 people, also broadcast live on National Public Radio. In April of 2011, Cyr made his conducting debut at Kimmel Center's Verizon Hall as part of ?uestlove and The Roots' Philly-Paris Lockdown at the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts.

Cyr's work leading Metropolis Ensemble in their first studio album, which featured Avner Dorman's Concertos, earned him a classical nomination in the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards along with Avi Avital (soloist) for Avner Dorman's Mandolin Concerto. The album was released on the NAXOS label and was made in collaboration with Grammy-winner "Classical Producer of the Year" David Frost. Next season, Cyr will lead Metropolis Ensemble in two new studio albums in collaboration with David Frost, featuring the music of Timothy Andres and Vivian Fung.

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Cyr is a native of Fort Kent, Maine, and holds music degrees from Bates College, the French National Conservatory (Etudes Supérieures), and Westminster Choir College. His primary musical mentors include Dr. Joseph Flummerfelt, Kenneth Kiesler, Pierre Grandmaison, and Kynan Johns. Cyr's work as conductor has been described by Esa-Pekka Salonen (Conductor, London Philharmonia) as "...precise, rhythmically incisive and fluid. He made complex new pieces sound natural and organic. What a pleasure it is to hear new music played with the same kind of panache and bravura we usually experience only in performances of standard repertoire."

Cyr successfully attracts diverse audiences for classical music through passionate performances, innovative programming, and artistically conceived community and education initiatives. Cyr commissions, premieres, and records new works from the freshest voices in classical composition, including Kati Agos, Timothy Andres, Brad Balliett, David Bruce, Enrico Chapela, Anna Clyne, Jakub Ciupinski, Elliot Cole, John Corigliano, Avner Dorman, Ryan Francis, Vivian Fung, Ryan Gallagher, Erin Gee, Raymond Lustig, Gity Razaz, Ricardo Romaneiro, Esa-Pekka Salonen, David Schiff, Adam Schoenberg, Cristina Spinei, Michael Ward-Bergeman, and Du Yun.

Cyr has collaborated and appeared with a number of major international performing artists who defy classification, including Oscar and Grammy-winning composer, artist, and conductor Tan Dun, ?uestlove and The Roots, the indie-rock sensation Deerhoof, 3-time Grammy-winning Producer of the Year David Frost, the French singer-songwriter Keren Ann, mandolinist Avi Avital, soprano Hila Plitmann, jazz saxophonists and composers Marty Ehrlich and David Murray, pianist/improviser D.D. Jackson, accordionist and composer Michael Ward-Bergeman and his U.K.-based roots trio Groanbox, Brazilian producer Leo Leite, and DJ THREE.


Photo by Joanna Williams