Noted in the New York Times as part of "a new wave of female conductors in their late 20's through early 40's", Sarah Hatsuko Hicks's versatile and vibrant musicianship has secured her place in "the next generation of up-and-coming American conductors."  She joined the Minnesota Orchestra as Assistant Conductor beginning in the 2006-2007 season, where she is lead conductor of the new "Inside the Classics" series, and concurrently holds the position of Staff Conductor at the Curtis Institute of Music.  She completed a two-year tenure as Associate Conductor of the Richmond Symphony Orchestra in June of 2007.  A cover conductor for the National Symphony Orchestra since 2003, she has guest conducted on their Family Concerts, Millennium Stage and summer series.  She has collaborated with numerous soloists, including Hilary Hahn, Nigel Kennedy and Doc Severinsen; in addition, she has acted as assistant conductor to such luminaries as James Levine, Sir Neville Marriner, Zubin Mehta and Yuri Temirkanov.

Ms. Hicks's past positions include Resident Conductor of the Florida Philharmonic, Assistant Conductor of the Reading Symphony Orchestra and Assistant Conductor of the Philadelphia Singers, the chorus of the Philadelphia Orchestra, whom she has led in radio broadcasts heard nationwide.  She has also been Music Director of the Hawaii Symphony, an ensemble she founded in 1991 in her hometown of Honolulu, which she led for five seasons.  Ms. Hicks has guest conducted extensively both in the States and abroad, including the Silesian State Philharmonic, Milwaukee Symphony, Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia and the Charleston Symphony.  Upcoming performances include debuts with the Buechon Philharmonic (at the Seoul Arts Center) and the South Carolina Philharmonic.  She has led the Symphony Orchestras of Houston, Indianapolis and Jacksonville, the Cleveland Orchestra and the Buffalo Philharmonic in workshops.

Ms. Hicks was invited to Japan by the New National Theatre Tokyo, where she acted as assistant conductor to a production of Mozart's Die Zauberflote and has performed Verdi's Aida with the East Slovak State Opera Theater.  Her extensive work with the Curtis Opera Studio include performances of Poulenc's Dialogue des Carmelites and numerous vocal concerts; she led the Opera Studio in a production of Handel's Alcina in April 2005.

A committed proponent of the performance of new music, Ms. Hicks regularly leads the Curtis Symphony Orchestra in readings, recording and performances of contemporary works.  In addition to premiering works by young composers from both the Curtis Institute and the University of Pennsylvania (as coordinator and conductor of the Penn Composers Project), she has collaborated with Ned Rorem, Richard Danielpour and Jennifer Higdon.  She has also conducted performances with Composers in the Shape of a Pear (Cleveland), premiering avant-garde works, and has been a guest conductor of the Aspen Contemporary Ensemble.  Her most recent collaborations include the premiere and recording of John Hedge's chamber opera, "The Invitation."

Ms. Hicks was a member of the Faculty of the Curtis Institute of Music from 2000-2005 and continues her affiliation with Curtis as Staff Conductor.  She has prepared the Symphony Orchestra of the Curtis Institute for readings and concerts with leading conductors including Wolfgang Sawallisch and Sir Simon Rattle.  Her work with the Curtis Symphony Orchestra led to a one-season appointment as assistant conductor to the UBS Verbier Festival Orchestra, an ensemble that she trained intensively for Music Director James Levine.

Sarah Hatsuko Hicks was born in Tokyo, Japan and raised in Honolulu, HI.  Trained on both the piano and viola, she was a prizewinning pianist by her early teens.  She received her BA magna cum laude from Harvard University as a composition major; her AIDS Oratoriowas premiered at Harvard University in May of 1993 and received a second performance at the Fogg Art Museum.  She holds an Artists' Degree in conducting from the Curtis Institute of Music, where she studied with renowned pedagogue Otto-Werner Mueller.  Ms. Hicks's talents have been recognized with numerous prizes and scholarships; she received the Thomas Hoopes Prize for composition and Doris Cohen Levy Prize for conducting from Harvard University, and she was the recipient of the Helen F. Whitaker Fund Scholarship and a Presser Award during her time at Curtis.

In her spare time, Ms. Hicks enjoys running, yoga, her two large dogs and singing in garage bands, including a pop/punk band, Cowpath 40.