Shira Samuels-Shragg

Shira Samuels-Shragg began her tenure as assistant conductor of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra at the start of the 2024/25 season. In this role she leads the orchestra in community-focused concerts, serves as assistant and cover conductor for music director Fabio Luisi and guest artists, and presents the Performance Preludes: educational and engaging lectures preceding each classical concert.

Additional upcoming engagements this season include debuts with the Chattanooga Symphony and the Colorado Music Festival Orchestra, as well as her subscription debut with the Spokane Symphony. Previously, Shira served as the assistant conductor for the Spokane and Plano symphonies.

A musician deeply dedicated to diversity in the orchestral world, Shira was delighted to be one of four conductors selected for The Dallas Opera’s 2024 Hart Institute for Women Conductors, and to be chosen as a mentee with the Taki Alsop Conducting Fellowship. Shira is passionate about sharing the wonders of music with young audiences and has led education concerts, sensory-friendly events, and family-oriented programs for over 80,000 students and their families. Additionally, she is the co-founder and former music director of the Plano Symphony’s Summer Youth Orchestra Camp, and served as the assistant conductor for National Youth Orchestra USA 2022, where she returned as associate conductor in 2024.

Other recent engagements include guest conducting concerts with the Corpus Christi, Irving, and South Bend symphonies, and serving as cover conductor for the St. Louis Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, and New York Philharmonic.

In May of 2022, Shira graduated with her Master of Music in Orchestral Conducting from The Juilliard School, where she studied with Maestro David Robertson. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music and a minor in German from Swarthmore College, where she studied conducting with Andrew Hauze and piano with Marcantonio Barone. Born and raised in Los Angeles, in her free time Shira enjoys going to yoga classes, reading novels, and continuing her quest to find the best breakfast tacos in Texas.