A Hong Kong native, Jaco Wong is a San Francisco-based conductor and composer who currently serves as the Artistic Assistant at Opera Parallèle and Assistant/ Cover Conductor at Oakland Symphony, where he made his professional orchestra conducting debut at the Michael Morgan Memorial Concert. Wong recently conducted at Mercury Soul, a DJ/ classical music event and assisted conductor Edwin Outwater at the Dr. Phillips Center Steinmetz Hall Opening Celebration in Orlando, FL, with notable artists including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and Jennifer Hudson. Wong remains an active educator as the co-conductor of the Harker School Orchestra and frequent substitute conductor of the SFCM Pre-College Ensembles. Wong was the former choral director of Pacific Palisades Presbyterian Church and Palisades Charter High School. Other highlights include preparing the Esperanza Azteca Youth Chorus to perform with Placido Domingo, conducting the Taipei Philharmonic, a recording session for Emmy Award-winning composer Jeremy Zuckerman, and participating in the Miami Music festival and Monteux Music Festival in New York City. Future engagements include assisting conductor Teddy Abrams at Louisville Orchestra’s season finale and serving as a conducting apprentice at Prague Summer Nights Music Festival.
Featured on SF Classical Voice, Wong most recently composed Inkling, a multimedia orchestra work in collaboration with animation artist Evan Tedlock, University of Maryland Baltimore County, and neuroscientist Enrique Vargas, UCSF Sound & Music Perception Lab, produced at Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture. Commissioned for an interactive installation, Psithaura is a finalist of the American Prize in composition, which has been performed in more than 4 countries and 7 cities, including under the baton of Donald Nally. Wong has previously composed for San Jose Chamber Orchestra, LA Choral Lab’s GPS-enabled Soundwalk, Iris Contemporary Dance Company, Hocket piano duo, Lang Lang, and the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra. Wong’s music is published by See-A-Dot Music Inc.
Wong is completing a Professional Studies Certificate in Orchestral Conducting at San Francisco Conservatory of Music, primarily studying conducting with Edwin Outwater and composition with Mason Bates. Wong holds a double Master's degree in Composition and Choral Conducting from University of Southern California, where he was the recipient of Morten Lauridsen Endowed Scholarship. He also attended a Summer Study Abroad in Paris by Eastman School of Music and IRCAM.