MEet DAna Sadava
Known for her elegant technique and broad expressive range, Dana Sadava enjoys a varied career as a conductor of opera and symphonic music. Ms. Sadava is the Associate Conductor of Opera at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where she works with graduate and undergraduate students as a conductor, vocal coach, and pianist. She is also the Artistic Director of both Pasadena Opera and the Mill Valley Philharmonic. Recent engagements include conducting the San Diego Symphony, West Edge Opera, Opera Steamboat, Opera San Jose, University of California San Diego, Wexford Opera (Ireland), Banff Opera as Theatre, Indianapolis Opera, Pensacola Opera, Island City Opera, Cinnabar Theater, and Festival Opera.
Ms. Sadava has a particular interest in educating audiences (and anyone!) about Classical music. For several years she was a faculty member of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Santa Clara University, where she taught courses on opera and symphonic music for non-musicians. During lockdown, she created an extensive series of free online lectures for the Mill Valley Philharmonic that were attended by several hundred people around the country.
She studied conducting with Kenneth Kiesler at the University of Michigan, where she earned a Masters degree on a merit scholarship. She studied piano with Dorothy Hwang at the Colburn School and Gabriel Chodos at the Aspen Music Festival. Before delving into musical life, Ms. Sadava earned an undergraduate degree in aeronautics and literature from Caltech. She lives in San Rafael, CA.
IN THE NEWS
“Sadava brought structure and clarity to her interpretation of the score.”
-Illana Walder-Biesanz, SF Classical Voice
“Island City’s splendid production…conducted by Dana Sadava with a firm but fluid hand”
-Joshua Kosman, SF Chronicle
“The Mill Valley Philharmonic…is thriving under the baton of Dana Sadava”
-Abby Wasserman, Classical Sonoma