OPINION | PAPER TRAILS: Conway native brings love of music to set off for dream job


Conway native Henry Bowen's lifelong love affair with music has landed him a dream job with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. He won't be onstage, however. Instead, starting Sept. 6, the 26-year-old UA-Fayetteville grad takes over as Manager of Artistic Planning and Administration.

"A large part of my role will be managing the artistic planning budget, which is the budget that controls what artists are getting hired, what conductors are hired," the soft-spoken Bowen says from Colorado, where he has been working with Bravo! Vail, a six-week long classical music festival held each summer.

The new gig blends his passion for symphonic music and his interest in logistics along with the work that goes on behind the scenes to bring music to the stage.

"I've always been a person who has had music as an important part of my life, and to work with other people who value it just as much is such a huge honor," he says.

Growing up in Conway, Bowen and his family attended First United Methodist Church. It was there that he first became interested in music, playing handbells and singing in the choir.

"I had an incredible music director there, Janet Gingerich," he says. "She is someone who has always encouraged my passion for music. I'm forever grateful to her for that."

In the sixth grade he took up trombone in the school band, which he played through high school and his undergrad years in Fayetteville.

"I credit the 10 years or so of playing trombone with really enforcing that foundation of music knowledge. It was also a way for me to be part of something bigger. When you're in a symphony, or a wind band ... all of these are ways to connect with other musicians. It was hugely important in shaping who I am today."

The Arkansas Symphony Orchestra and the circle of classical enthusiasts here also made an impact.

"That network of classical musicians in Central Arkansas is an important one," he says. "It was a hugely important thing for me growing up to have that community."

Bowen hopped around a bit in his studies at UA, focusing first on music education then switching to music theory and composition before graduating with a general music degree with elective studies in business.

He earned a master's in arts administration from Indiana University in Bloomington, Ind., and it was during graduate school that he also interned for Bravo! Vail. He signed on full-time in 2021 with the festival, which brings in resident symphonies each year.

Now he's leaving the Rockies for the Big Apple, and his enthusiasm is obvious.

"It's exciting and scary. It's a high-intensity job, but it's also high reward ... It's a big move for a kid from Conway, and I can't wait."

email: sclancy@adgnewsroom.com


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