Gemma New’s role as the NZSO’s Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor is kindly supported by the NZSO Foundation – which is made possible by the extraordinary generosity of the Orchestra’s donors.

Sought after for her insightful interpretations and dynamic presence, New Zealand-born Gemma New is a leader among the new generation of conductors.

Gemma is currently Artistic Advisor and Principal Conductor of the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Music Director of the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra and Principal Guest Conductor of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Hailed as "a rising star in the musical firmament" (St. Louis Post-Dispatch), New was awarded Solti Foundation Career Assistance Awards in 2017 and 2019.

New has conducted the Atlanta Symphony, Toronto Symphony, San Diego Symphony, Rochester Philharmonic, Florida Orchestra, Calgary Philharmonic, Berkeley Symphony, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and many others.

Her guest conducting has taken her internationally with orchestras such as the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Helsingborgs Symfoniorkester, Malmö Symfoniorkester, Brandenburgisches Staatsorchester, Filharmonia Szczecin and Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, and back home to New Zealand with the Auckland Philharmonia, Christchurch Symphony, Opus Orchestra and more.

New's work as Music Director of the Hamilton Philharmonic has been committed to deepening the orchestra's artistic level and expanding its reach into the community. She recently launched the HPO's first "Intimate and Immersive" concert series, creating a closer-to-the-music atmosphere by combining treasures of the orchestra canon and contemporary music, electronic indie music, lighting and visual art installations.