Principal Conductor
Peter Stafford Wilson has served as Principal Conductor of Tulsa Ballet since 2012 and will return in the 2026–27 season to lead the Tulsa Symphony in performances of Swan Lake, Cinderella, and Romeo and Juliet.
A native of North Carolina, Wilson studied at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music under the mentorship of Thomas Schippers. His training also includes the Aspen Music School with Dennis Russell Davies, the Eastern Music Festival—where he later joined the faculty—the Pierre Monteux School, Boris Goldovsky’s Summer Opera Institute, and Rome’s Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, where he worked closely with Franco Ferrara.
Since 2001, Wilson has served as Music Director of the Springfield Symphony Orchestra in Ohio, recently earning a League of American Orchestras/ASCAP Award for Adventuresome Programming. He also continues his long-standing leadership of the Westerville Symphony at Otterbein University. A frequent collaborator with BalletMet/Columbus, he conducts regularly at the Detroit Opera House with the Michigan Opera Theater Orchestra. His recent engagements include debuts with the Philadelphia Ballet and the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra in China. Wilson is also Principal Guest Conductor of the Kansas City Ballet, where he leads more than a dozen annual performances of Devon Carney’s acclaimed production of The Nutcracker.
Following his advanced studies, Wilson was appointed Assistant and later Associate Conductor of the Canton Symphony Orchestra. The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra named him Regional Pops Conductor, a role in which he led widely praised performances throughout Ohio, Indiana, and Kentucky. In 1990, he joined the Columbus Symphony, appearing on all subscription and outreach series during a distinguished 28-year tenure. Upon his departure, he became the third recipient of the George Hardesty Award for Outstanding Leadership. The League of American Orchestras recognized his emerging talent through its Conductor Preview program.
Wilson has maintained a long association with The Cleveland Orchestra, serving as cover conductor for concerts at Severance Hall and the Blossom Music Center. His guest conducting credits include the orchestras of Indianapolis, Detroit, Seattle, Syracuse, Erie, Hong Kong, and Montevideo, as well as appearances at the Chautauqua Institution, and the Oklahoma City Ballet. He has twice led the Columbus Symphony Youth Orchestra at Carnegie Hall to great acclaim. His commitment to young musicians and audiences was honored in 2018 when the Greater Columbus Arts Council named him Educator of the Year.