Peter Shannon
Affiliate, Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education
Web page: http://theaimh.org
Bio
The Irish-American conductor Peter Shannon aspires to prove to others that orchestral music can transform lives and communities. Innovative and tireless in his outreach, Shannon embodies the new and growing role of music director.
2023/2024 is Peter Shannon s ninth year as Artistic Director and Conductor of the Jackson Symphony. From 2008 to 2019 he held the position as Artistic Director and Conductor of the Savannah Philharmonic, Georgia. Previous to this he held conducting positions in Germany and is still active as a guest conductor in Europe.
The son of a physician, Shannon hails from a long line of medical professionals. Combining the performing arts with the healing arts, he has developed performance programs for cancer center patients, including children receiving inpatient care and individuals in hospice care. Through a specially developed, evidence-based curriculum focusing on communicating with compassion, Shannon, in collaboration with physician Dr. Jacqueline Huntly, has developed programs using music to help both musicians and healthcare professionals develop new skills to work effectively in a healthcare setting. Most recently the program "Nurturing the Inner Healer" was presented to hundreds of healthcare professionals by the Department of Bioethics and Medical Humanities at Mercer University, where he is an affiliative professor.