Renowned Conductor
International Guest Conductor
Music Director 

In 1994, he led the St. Petersburg Philharmonic in Russia as guest conductor for the Anton Rubinstein Centennial Concert, and in 1993 he was invited by the Minister of Culture to become the first American to conduct the State Orchestra of Azerbaijan in Baku. In 1992 he led a tour of the Deutsch-Amerikanisches Blasorchester throughout Southern Germany under the auspices of the U.S. General Consul. As a guest conductor, Kolman has also led the Orchestre Royal de Chambre of Belgium, the Orquestra do Norte in Portugal (as conductor and clarinetist), the Poznan and Czestochowa Orchestras in Poland, the Cordoba Symphony Orchestra in Argentina, the Hunan Philharmonic in China, the Botosani Philharmonic in Romania, the Gilea Chamber Orchestra and Crimean State Philharmonic Orchestra in Ukraine, the West Bohemian Symphony Orchestra in the Czech Republic, the Ural State Philharmonic in Russia, the Hopkins Symphony in Baltimore, the Northern Music Festival Orchestra in Ontario, and the Rio de Janeiro Philharmonic. He has performed concerts of tango throughout the world with the young Argentinean singer, Estefania Holman.

Dr. Kolman has led the Buffalo Philharmonic (New York), Mesa (Arizona) and North Arkansas Symphony Orchestras and recorded his fifth CD with the State Philharmonic of Iasi (Romania). He has conducted the Slovak State Symphony Orchestra of Kosice during the city’s annual sacred music festival and then in the first recording of Anton Rubinstein’s Symphony No. 3 for Centaur Records. He has also recorded music of Pulitzer prize-winner Karel Husa with the Slovak Radio Symphony in Bratislava for the Marco Polo label. A recording of George Antheil’s music, also on Centaur, was released on May 1, 1996 as well as a disk of Max Steiner’s film music which was released on April 1, 1998. He is currently working on the premiere recording of, “Where Do We Go from Here?” a film musical comedy with music by Kurt Weill and lyrics by Ira Gershwin.

Kolman has led The Shenandoah Symphony Orchestra through a period of unprecedented growth. During his tenure, he has introduced a guest artist series, bringing such world-renowned performers as the Netherlands Wind Ensemble, the Chestnut Brass Company, Leon Bates and Mark Nuccio Principal Clarinet with the New York Philharmonic to perform under his baton. Dr. Kolman was previously the Music Director and Conductor of the Madison Symphony Orchestra, which he led on their first tour of metropolitan New York. As Music Director and Conductor of the Bemidji Symphony Orchestra, Dr. Kolman established a guest artist series, a Kinder-Concert series and a commissioning project.

Off-stage, Kolman shares his message and his musical approach as an author. His book, The Language of Music Revealed (Universal Publishers), teaches readers how to read and write music, and as a result to understand and appreciate music more. Kolman calls the 300-page work an “un-text” book since it diverges from typical musical instruction in that it’s fun to read, conversational, and non-intimidating. Geared toward younger audiences, The Language of Music Revealed is designed to appeal to a range of readers—from self-taught musicians who play only by ear, to students taking private lessons, to adults with interest, and even to non-musical types who simply want to know more about music.

Kolman received his doctorate in conducting from the University of Northern Colorado where he was awarded the Graduate Dean’s Citation for Excellence and a Colorado Graduate Fellowship. His Master of Music degree in clarinet performance is from Illinois State University and his bachelor’s degree in music education is from the Crane School of Music, for which he received a New York State Regents’ Scholarship. Dr. Kolman studied conducting with Eugene Corporon of the University of North Texas, and has participated in master classes led by Zubin Mehta and Frederick Fennell.