Kamloops Symphony announces new executive director

Daniel Mills speaking to the crowd at his unveiling to Kamloops. (via Brendan Kergin)

What is 30 years old, comes from Calgary, has three degrees, knows how to play classical music on a trumpet and has a passion for running and triathlons?

The new Kamloops Symphony executive director, Daniel Mills.

The symphony's board of directors announced their choice to replace retiring executive director Kathy Humphreys and held a meet-and-greet with the incoming administrator today, June 10, at St. Andrews on the Square.

Announcing our new Executive Director, Daniel Mills. #Kamloopshttps://t.co/2vkOOvN5Ci

— Kamloops Symphony (@KamSymphony) June 10, 2019

"The board of directors are very excited to announce this appointment," society president Miki Andrejevic says. "Daniel brings with him an array of arts administration and fundraising experience. We trust he will, together with music director Dina Gilbert, help lead the Kamloops Symphony onto further development and excellence."

Mills is, himself, excited with the new job. He's only arrived in Kamloops this week and is still getting settled in while he trains with Humphreys. While he's worked for a variety of arts groups, including the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, he says the completion of his master's in business administration late last year set him on the search for a new job.

"I was looking for what that next step was. I wanted an opportunity that could combine the different aspects of arts administration," he says. "I had a friend share with me that the post was open, and I was like, 'Oh, this looks great' and it was the exact right moment for me to jump into this role and, thankfully, was chosen."

Daniel Mills has been introduced as the new executive director of the @KamSymphony pic.twitter.com/7RHIntVcqf

— Brendan Kergin ?? (@BKergin) June 10, 2019

Mills adds he's interested in taking advantage of Kamloops' connection with nature.

"What I'm most interested in is combining the arts with the active outdoors lifestyle that Kamloops enjoys," he says. "That's my personal vision."

That comes from a personal place, as he's an amateur triathlete, and wants to teach people that there can be a balance between traditionally unrelated passions.

He's also looking forward to working with Gilbert on including different voices, like female representation and local composers. He notes a lot of the favourites from the classical world are traditional European composers, and showcasing different voices can be a challenge.

Also, as a member of the city's arts community, he's already keeping a close eye on the potential performing arts centre.

"I know that that's going to be on the forefront of a lot of our thoughts," he says. "I'm very excited to see how that plays out. Being from Calgary, being involved with the arts centre there and even growing up in Calgary and the services and possibilities that provided have been so great, so I'm really excited that might be  happening here."