Executive Director Terell Johnson

Deeply invested in supporting Chicago’s performing arts community and shaping the future of the classical music industry, Terell Johnson is the Executive Director of the award-winning Chicago Philharmonic and serves on both the Board Director of the Illinois Council of Orchestras and as a Co-Chair for the Harris Theater for Music and Dance Committee on Resident Companies. On the national front, Johnson was selected to join other elite Black and Latinx arts leaders as a member of the third cohort of Sphinx LEAD (Leaders in Excellence, Arts & Diversity), a 2-year leadership program designed to evolve the classical music industry landscape by empowering the next generation of executive leaders. Johnson proudly serves as a role model and mentor to the next generation of young arts leaders of color, all while reimagining the symphonic concert experience with one of the nation’s most versatile, innovative, and ambitious orchestras in the country.

In his first three years at the Philharmonic, Johnson has blazed a trail for more inclusive symphony concerts with genre-bending programming featuring a range of diverse artists. Among his most recent successes included the orchestra’s historic 2024 Lollapalooza debut, as the first orchestra to ever perform at the iconic festival. The Philharmonic shared the stage with jazz-pop sensation Laufey to 100,000+ listeners at the festival and a global audiences streaming live at home on Hulu.

According to Musical America, the leading classical music industry publication, “Chicago Philharmonic is fast becoming the savviest programmer in Chicago’s symphonic firmament under the leadership of new executive director Terell Johnson.” Johnson was also a 2023 Crain’s 40 Under 40 Chicago Awardee.