Board & Staff

The Board of Directors for the Minnesota Philharmonic Orchestra is truly a working board — there are no paid administrative staff within the MPO. Our Board works diligently year-round to develop and execute on a strategy for growth, and fulfillment of the organizational mission. The board meets monthly as a full group. Key committees will have additional meetings as needed to address specific needs of the organization or special events.

Join the board! If you are interested in becoming a board member or working on a committee, please email secretary@mnphil.org. New board members are elected annually at the orchestra’s general meeting, held in June.

Meet the Board & Artistic Staff

Brian Edward Dowdy

Brian Edward Dowdy

Artistic Director and Principal Conductor

A diversely experienced conductor, performer and educator, Brian Edward Dowdy begins his first season as Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the Minnesota Philharmonic Orchestra in the 2017-18 season. He is also the newly appointed Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the St. Cloud Symphony Orchestra and former Artistic Director of the Mississippi Valley Orchestra. […]

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Catherine Himmerich

Catherine Himmerich

Concertmaster

Catherine Himmerich, Concertmaster, holds both a bachelor’s degree, summa cum laude in Violin Performance, and a master’s degree from the University of Minnesota. Prior to that, she studied at the Music Institute of Chicago and the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music in Milwaukee. Her primary teachers have included Roger Frisch, Roland Vamos, J. Patrick Rafferty, and […]

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Derek Waller

President
Violin

Derek has played violin in the orchestra since 2017 and joined the board in 2019. He has worked as a project manager for the healthcare software maker, Epic, and as an organizer for the Minnesotans United for All Families campaign in 2012. He is excited to use these experiences to serve the MPO. As an […]

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Daniel Meyers

Vice President
Bass

Kenneth Kusiak

Secretary
Percussion

Isabel Arenivar

Director of Operations
Violin

Raymond Cannon

At-large Board Member
Trombone

Rebecca Eilers

At-large Board Member
Violin

Brian Hadley

Music Librarian
Principal Bassoon

Brian serves as the Music Librarian where he serves on the MPO’s Programming Committee, communicates with music publishers to rent or purchase performance pieces, manages the music library, distributes and collects the music to and from the musicians, and communicates issues relating to the Music Library with the Music Director and Board of Directors. Brian […]

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Peter Kennedy

Personnel Manager
Clarinet

Joe Dolson

Webmaster
Violin, Associate Concertmaster

Joe is the former concertmaster of the MPO, and has been playing with the orchestra since the fall of 2000. In addition to the MPO, Joe plays in a duo with stand partner Catherine Himmerich and plays baroque violin in the baroque ensemble, “Sospiri.” Professionally, Joe helps organizations make their websites usable by people with […]

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Standing Committees

  • Executive Committee: comprised of the four executive officers (President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary), this committee is responsible for the overall functioning and management of the MPO, similar to the executive leadership team of an organization; manages all paid and unpaid staff, board members, committee members, and volunteers.
  • Development Committee: designs, develops, and implements fundraising strategies and plans; organizes fundraising events; handles all donor development and relations, as well as coordinates grant submissions/applications.
  • Finance Committee: assists the Treasurer with all general accounting and bookkeeping; and, handles all financial matters for the organization including financial planning and budgeting, tax, regulatory filings, and insurance.
  • Governance Committee: responsible for board relations, development, recruiting, and overall management; assists the Secretary with oversight, development, and adherence to policies, and organizational bylaws.
  • Marketing Committee: develops marketing plans and manages general external communications and marketing activities, including online response/social media, print, and web.
  • Operations Committee: plans for, and executes all concert/event production activities including volunteer coordination, box office, venue, ticketing, program development/printing, and general logistics.
  • Programming Committee: in collaboration with the Music Director, develops engaging programs including selection and approval of repertoire, concert series/cycle theme, and overall tone/messaging of programs.