Matthew Salvaggio
Musician; Teaching Artist
Matthew Salvaggio is the founder and Music Director of the Cleveland Repertory Orchestra. Additionally, the 2021/22 season marks his fifth season as Music Director of the Euclid Symphony Orchestra, where his responsibilities include conducting classical, pops, and educational concerts, and his seventh season as Musical and Artistic Director of the University Heights Symphonic Band.
As an artistic leader, Matthew has guided his ensembles through the process of becoming independent non-profit entities and has expanded programming with each of his organizations. In 2019, he established the Tom Baker Young Artists Competition with the Euclid Symphony Orchestra. The annual competition awards the winner a performance opportunity with the ESO and a cash prize.
An advocate for new music, Matt has helped commission nearly twenty works in the last decade from composers including Mark Camphouse, Anthony O’Toole, Michael Kallstrom, Kevin Walczyk, and Tony Manfredonia. Artistic collaborations include John Rautenberg (Cleveland Orchestra), John DiCesare (Seattle Symphony), Joshua Lauretig (Buffalo Philharmonic), Kyra Kester (Akron Symphony), Cameron Leach, J.c. Sherman, Emily Cornelius and ESO concertmaster Liesl Hook.
Matt earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology from the University of Akron and a Master of Music degree in conducting from Kent State University.