Coming to the end of a highly acclaimed tenure as Assistant, Associate, then Resident Conductor of the Milwaukee Symphony, Yaniv Dinur has just signed a five-year renewal contract as Music Director of the New Bedford Symphony (MA). The League of American Orchestras honored the Symphony in 2021 by inviting them to be one of the orchestras to perform at the League's conference that year. Mr. Dinur is consistently lauded for his bold and engaging programming, insightful interpretations, and exceptional ability to connect with audiences. Yaniv Dinur made his conducting debut at the age of 19 with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, which led to multiple return engagements. Following his European debut, he was invited to perform with the Israel Camerata in Jerusalem, making him the youngest conductor ever to conduct a professional orchestra in Israel. Since then, he has conducted orchestras around the world, including the Israel Philharmonic, Orchestra di Padova e del Veneto, Portugal Symphony Orchestra, Sofia Festival Orchestra/Bulgaria, Solisti di Perugia, State Orchestra of St. Petersburg, Torino Philharmonic, and the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa. Broadcast live on Israeli radio, he was the principal conductor of the Jerusalem Symphony’s Young Artists Competition from 2003 to 2010. North American guest conducting engagements include the symphonies of Houston (multiple times), Detroit, San Diego (multiple times), Fort Worth, Sarasota (multiple times), Edmonton (Canada), New World (Miami), San Antonio, Tulsa, and the Louisiana Philharmonic. Festival appearances include multiple appearances at Round Top (Texas), Peninsula (Wisconsin), and Sewanee (Tennessee). Named the 2019 Sir Georg Solti Conducting Fellow (the largest award for conductors in the U.S.), Mr. Dinur was also recipient of 2016 and 2017 Solti Foundation Career Grants. Other awards include Second Prize at the International Eduardo Mata 2009 Conducting Competition in Mexico City; the Yuri Ahronovitch First Prize at the 2005 Aviv Conducting Competition in Israel; as well as grants from the America-Israel Cultural Foundation and the Zubin Mehta Scholarship Endowment. More recently he was named by the Milwaukee Business Journal as one of the city’s most impressive young leaders, currently making a positive difference in Milwaukee. Yaniv Dinur is also an accomplished pianist and a passionate music educator, who is committed to exposing new audiences to classical music. He often gives pre-concert talks and lectures in which he incorporates live demonstrations on the piano, aiming to reveal surprising connections between pieces, composers, and eras. He also created a series of short, sometimes humorous YouTube videos that give a deeper look into musical pieces of all genres. Mr. Dinur has worked closely with such world-class conductors as Michael Tilson Thomas, the late Kurt Masur, Jorma Panula, and the late Lorin Maazel; soloists with whom he has collaborated include Itzhak Perlman, Yefim Bronfman, Vadim Guzman, Inon Barnatan, Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, and Karen Gomyo. He holds a Doctorate in Orchestral Conducting from the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre and Dance, where he was a student of Kenneth Kiesler. Born in Jerusalem, Yaniv Dinur began studying the piano at the age of six with his aunt, Olga Shachar, and later with Prof. Alexander Tamir, Tatiana Alexanderov, Mark Dukelsky, and Edna Golandsky. At the age of 16, he began to study conducting with Dr. Evgeny Zirlin. While still in high school, Mr. Dinur began his formal studies with Dr. Zirlin at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance. After graduating from the Jerusalem Academy, he studied privately with conductor Mendi Rodan.