Pasadena Symphony & Pops Appoints Andrew Brown as Chief Executive Officer

The Board of Directors of the Pasadena Symphony and POPS has named Andrew Brown as Chief Executive Officer, following an executive search guided by Arts Consulting Group. As CEO of the Pasadena Symphony and POPS, Brown will manage the Pasadena Symphony, currently in a Music Director search, the Pasadena POPS, under the direction of Principal Pops Conductor Michael Feinstein, and the Pasadena Youth Symphony Orchestras, serving over 700 students in the San Gabriel Valley. Brown brings a wealth of experience as a seasoned performing arts executive to usher in an exciting period of growth as the institution embarks on its 96th season. Brown will begin his tenure on November 13, 2023.

Brown has more than 20 years of leadership experience in the performing arts, serving for the past five years as CEO of Pacific Chorale, where he guided the organization through significant transitions and growth, including earning its first GRAMMY Award for Best Choral Performance in 2021. Prior to joining Pacific Chorale, Andrew rose through the ranks of the LA Master Chorale, acting as Chief Operating Officer from 2016-2019. He helped facilitate the Master Chorale’s transition to a fully professional chorus and tenured orchestra, produced the 2018 Big Sing California and executive produced the internationally-acclaimed first world tour of Lagrime di San Pietro, staged by Peter Sellars.

“I am deeply honored to be named the next CEO of the Pasadena Symphony and POPS, during a time of exciting transition for the organization,” said Brown. “It is a tremendous opportunity to jump into the search for the orchestra’s next Music Director and to work closely with Principal Pops Conductor Michael Feinstein to shepherd the artistic vision of this incredibly talented ensemble. I look forward to working with the Board, staff, musicians and all stakeholders to build upon the Pasadena Symphony and POPS’ solid foundation as a dynamic cultural treasure serving our greater Pasadena community.”

The Pasadena Symphony and POPS is also excited to announce that Kimberly S. Winick has been elected as President of the Board of Directors, commencing with the 23/24 Season. Winick has served on the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors for over a decade in roles of varying responsibility, including Director at Large, Co-Chair of the CEO Search Committee and Vice President of Investments.

“The Pasadena Symphony and POPS is in the midst of a vibrant rejuvenation,” said Winick. “I am honored and thrilled to serve as President of the Board as we welcome Andrew Brown as our new CEO, select a new Music Director, and set off on new musical adventures. With familiar venues and new faces, I look forward to keeping our audiences sustained and excited to enjoy all that we offer as we look to a bright future.”

About Andrew Brown
Chief Executive Officer

Andrew has more than 20 years of leadership experience in the professional performing arts. He was appointed President & CEO of the GRAMMY-Award-winning Pacific Chorale in December 2018. Pacific Chorale is the resident chorus at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa, CA, and a frequent collaborator with such world-class ensembles as Pacific Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

As CEO of Pacific Chorale, he guided the $3 million organization through significant transitions, growth and even a global pandemic. Under his leadership, the organization nearly doubled its endowment, established a board-designated operating reserve and an artistic innovation fund to support new projects, amassed annual operating surpluses, and expanded the diversity of its Board, staff, singers and programming.

During this period, Andrew produced several substantial artistic projects for Pacific Chorale, including Artistic Director Rob Istad’s first recording leading the Chorale, All Things Common (2020), featuring works of Tarik O’Regan on the Yarlung Records label. During the pandemic, Andrew produced the Chorale’s first-ever virtual concert gala in December 2021, which was live-streamed to over 5,000 households and raised over $250,000. Not to be silenced during the pandemic, the Chorale also produced the concert film The Wayfaring Project, premiering in August 2021 and broadcast on PBS in December 2021, now available for streaming nationwide on the PBS app.

Most significantly, Pacific Chorale earned its first GRAMMY Award for Best Choral Performance in 2021, for its collaboration on the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s monumental recording of Mahler Symphony No. 8. In the summer of 2023, the Chorale toured Europe with notable performances in Salzburg Cathedral, Oxford’s Sheldonian Theatre, Bath Abby, and Salisbury Cathedral.

Prior to joining Pacific Chorale, Andrew worked for the LA Master Chorale, the resident chorus at Walt Disney Concert Hall, most recently as their Chief Operating Officer. While at the LA Master Chorale he helped facilitate their transition to a fully professional chorus and a tenured orchestra, produced the 2018 Big Sing California, a first-of-its-kind, live-streamed virtual choral singalong and concert project with Eric Whitacre and LA Master Chorale, and in 2019, executive produced the internationally-acclaimed first world tour of Lagrime di San Pietro (The Tears of St. Peter), staged by Peter Sellars. As a professional singer, Andrew sang with the LA Master Chorale for ten seasons and can also be heard on numerous film and television soundtracks.

Andrew holds M.B.A. and M.A. in Arts Management degrees from the Drucker School or Management at Claremont Graduate University, and a bachelor’s degree in music education from Ball State University.

About Kimberly S. Winick
President, Board of Directors

Kimberly S. Winick is a commercial finance lawyer who has focused on restructuring businesses during a 38-year career. She is currently a mediator for local bankruptcy courts, and often provides pro bono services in Spanish. Kimberly has long been a devotee of the arts, and directs her own creative energies to maintaining an edible urban garden and baking her family’s bread. She is an avid swimmer and cyclist and loves to travel.

Kimberly has served on many professional and civic organizations. She acted as a Lawyer Representative and an Executive Committee member of the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference and as Chair of the Education Committee of the State Bar of California. She is a fellow of the American College of Commercial Financial Lawyers, and is a past President of both the Financial Lawyers Conference and the Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum. She is currently a Commissioner of the West Hollywood Transportation and Mobility Commission and Secretary of the West Hollywood West Residents Association. Having served on the Executive Committee of the Pasadena Symphony and POPS for over a decade, Kimberly is energized by the many facets of the organization and is particularly enthusiastic about the musical opportunities that we provide local youth.

Kimberly holds a J.D. from the University of Texas at Austin School of Law, and a bachelor’s degree in Spanish and English Literature from Middlebury College.

About the Pasasdena Symphony Association

Formed in 1928, the Pasadena Symphony and POPS is an ensemble of Hollywood’s most talented, sought-after musicians. With extensive credits in film, television, recording and the orchestral industry, the artists of the Pasadena Symphony and POPS are the most heard in the world.

The Pasadena Symphony and POPS performs in two of the most extraordinary venues in the United States: Ambassador Auditorium, known as the Carnegie Hall of the West, and the Los Angeles Arboretum & Botanic Garden. The multi-platinum-selling, two-time Emmy and five-time Grammy Award-nominated entertainer dubbed “The Ambassador of the Great American Songbook,” Michael Feinstein, leads the POPS as Principal Pops Conductor, succeeding Marvin Hamlisch.

A hallmark of its robust education programs, the Pasadena Symphony Association has served the youth of the region for over five decades through the Pasadena Youth Symphony Orchestras (PYSO). PYSO offers supplemental in-class instruction within the Pasadena Unified School District and eleven performance ensembles, serving over 700 4th-12th grade students from all over Southern California. The PYSO has performed at venues across the globe as well as on the television show GLEE.

The PSA provides people from all walks of life with powerful access points to the world of symphonic music.