Jonathan Colby, a native of Middlesex, England joined First Parish as Music Director in Fall 2014. His conducting has been praised by the Cape Cod Times for its “precision and vitality.” He was recently appointed Music Director and Conductor of the Farmington Valley Symphony Orchestra (CT) where he leads a 90-member orchestra in five subscription concerts each season. He enters his third season as Artistic Director of the Worcester Youth Orchestras, where he conducts the Worcester Youth Symphony Orchestra and Worcester Youth Baroque Orchestra. In two years he has grown the organization from one orchestra to three orchestras, and rejuvenated the 67-year-old program into a thriving member of the central Massachusetts music community. In demand as a guest conductor and clinician, he regularly conducts district orchestra festivals and appears with orchestras around New England.
Jonathan had his first UU experience as a tenor section leader at First Unitarian Society of Newton before going on to serve as choir director at the Unitarian Universalist Society of Amherst for three years, and music director at First Parish in Framingham prior to his arrival First Parish Unitarian Universalist in Arlington.