Portland Youth Philharmonic
Hattner is the Musical Director of the highly acclaimed Portland Youth Philharmonic (Oregon), the nation’s oldest youth orchestra. The fifth music director in its distinguished 93-year history, he is the first to be born in the United States. Known for his encyclopedic knowledge of American repertoire, Hattner’s programming is relevant, thoughtful, and “especially attractive.” (The Chicago Tribune)
Selected from a pool of 112 candidates Hattner received rave reviews following his debut with PYP in November 2008: “The Portland Youth Philharmonic roared like a Maserati on Saturday in its first concert under music director David Hattner. The route was challenging, the execution distinguished and the ride delightful,” wrote David Stabler for The Oregonian.
Hattner “has very high artistic vision (and) worked ferociously to become the excellent conductor he is. Nobody handed him anything. He worked for it and succeeded. PYP is tremendously fortunate to have persuaded David to join them.”
— Murry Sidlin, former Resident Conductor of the Oregon Symphony, who worked with Hattner at the Aspen Music Festival and the Cascade Festival of Music