Our Staff

Kyle Wiley Pickett - Music Director

KYLE PICKETT is recognized as one of America's most exciting and charismatic young conductors as well as an acclaimed orchestra builder.

Following his doctoral studies at the Peabody Conservatory with the renowned conducting teacher Frederik Prausnitz, Kyle Pickett was appointed Music Director by the Juneau Symphony in 2000. In nine seasons as Music Director, he has increased the complement of the orchestra, raised the artistic standard, tripled the budget, instituted a popular pre-concert "Conversation with the Conductor" series and established an annual summer Pops concert.

Kyle Pickett is also the music director of the North State Symphony, in northern California. Kyle was appointed to both the Redding and Chico symphony orchestras in 1999 and 2000. Within a year of these appointments, he spearheaded the merger of the two ensembles into the North State Symphony, creating a single professional orchestra that bridges communities and ensures the future of symphonic music in Northern California.

Highlights of Kyle Pickett's current season include the West Coast premieres of Lowell Liebermann's Concerto for Clarinet & Orchestra, written for Jon Manasse and presented by both the Juneau and North State symphonies. He also leads the Bozeman Symphony Orchestra in holiday performances of The Nutcracker with The Montana Ballet Company. Current and recent guest conducting engagements include the Rogue Valley Symphony in Southern Oregon and the Santa Rosa Symphony Pops in performances with Spectrum Motown and Bravo, Broadway!

A native of Los Gatos, Kyle Pickett holds a Bachelor's degree in music from Stanford University and a Master's degree in choral conducting from the California State University at Chico. His Doctorate of Musical Arts degree in orchestral conducting was conferred by the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore. Dr. Pickett is also an accomplished flutist, having studied with Frances Blaisdell and Robert Willoughby. He also trained in voice with Wayne Connor and Judith Bettina.

Kyle lives in Lake California, CA with his wife, Alice, his two sons, Ned and Grant, and their Dachshund Max.

Valerie Snyder - Executive Director

Valerie is in charge of the Symphony's day to day administrative operations including, but not limited to, marketing, bookkeeping, grant writing, concert preparation and updating this website. She has been part of Juneau's arts scene since she first moved here in 2004 for a Perseverance Theatre internship. Since then she has worked on stage and off as a costume designer, props designer, scenic artist, stage manager, juggler, musician, stage crew, singer, dancer, house manager and one brief stint as a sound crew roadie. Some of her favorite projects have been painting the 2008 Folk Fest backdrop, making costumes for Hedwig and the Angry Inch in 2005, making a swarm of puppet lizards for JDHS's Holes in 2006 and of course, playing with the Juneau Symphony.

Valerie has been in the orchestra's violin section since 2006. She is delighted that so many people in Juneau share her love of the arts. Before moving to Alaska, Valerie earned a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre at UCLA.