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• Comment: In accordance with Wikipedia's Conflict of interest guideline, I disclose that I have a conflict of interest regarding the subject of this article. Musicmjw (talk) 22:57, 1 May 2026 (UTC)

Matthew Wardell (born 1983) is an American conductor. He has served as music director and conductor of the Ocala Symphony Orchestra since 2009. He spearheaded the development of the Reilly Arts Center in Ocala, Florida, and served on the Ocala City Council from 2015 to 2021.

Wardell was born in Jacksonville, Florida. He earned a Bachelor of Music cum laude (2007) from the University of North Florida, followed by a Master of Music (2010) and a Doctor of Musical Arts (2022) from the University of Florida, where he studied with Raymond Chobaz.^[1] He attended the Pierre Monteux School for Conductors and Orchestra Musicians in Hancock, Maine for five summers, studying with Michael Jinbo, and also studied with Keith Lockhart of the Boston Pops Orchestra.^[2]

In June 2009, the Ocala Symphony Orchestra board selected Wardell as its new music director and conductor after a competitive search, choosing him over an initial first-choice candidate following his interview. Board member Linda Smith recalled: "When he finished the interview, he walked out, and we all looked at each other and said, 'Wow.'" Board president Toni James noted that Wardell, though 26, had "packed a lot into those 26 years" and brought "the vigor we were looking for."^[3] At 26, he was the youngest conductor in the orchestra's history, replacing James Plondke.^[4]

The Ocala Star-Banner editorial board welcomed his appointment, writing that the hiring of Wardell represented "a daring and dynamic choice" and that more than 20 candidates had applied for the position, "some from as far away as New York."^[5]

When Wardell arrived, the orchestra was presenting 6 to 8 performances per year with an annual budget of $191,000 and an $80,000 deficit.^[6] By 2014, the budget had grown to nearly $500,000 with no deficit, and the orchestra was presenting more than two dozen performances per year. OSO Board President Cindy Van Heyde noted: "Since Matt has come, year after year we have increased our donors and attendance at our concerts."^[7] By 2018, Wardell had grown the orchestra to 32 annual performances and expanded its budget to $2.1 million. The orchestra's youth program grew from 6 participants to more than 300.^[8]

Wardell has been noted for his commitment to programming works by living and underrepresented composers. Under his direction, the Ocala Symphony has presented world and United States premieres of works by Michael Daugherty, María de Pablos, Paul Richards, Stella Sung, and Jenni Brandon.^[9] Composer Michael Daugherty described the Ocala Symphony as "the hardest working orchestra in Florida."^[10] Wardell has also developed extensive experience in live-to-film conducting, leading productions including Star Wars concert films and Disney's Aladdin in Concert.^[11]

In 2025, Wardell extended his contract as music director and conductor of the Ocala Symphony Orchestra for five years.^[12] That same year the Ocala Symphony marked its 50th anniversary season under his direction. Ocala Magazine published a feature on his leadership and the organization's history.^[13]

Wardell was instrumental in the development of the Reilly Arts Center, created through the renovation of the former Ocala City Auditorium, a 1940s-era building in Tuscawilla Park. Prior to his election to the City Council, he had worked with the council on plans to convert the old auditorium into a performing arts center.^[14] He led fundraising efforts that raised more than $2 million toward the renovation, including a $700,000 donation from local philanthropist Robert Reilly in memory of his wife Bonnie, for whom the center is named.^[15] The center opened in October 2015 as a 705-seat performing arts venue and home of the Ocala Symphony Orchestra.^[16] Wardell served as the Reilly's chief executive and artistic director for its first nine years.^[17]

The Ocala Star-Banner editorial board praised the organization's growth in 2018, writing that "the marriage of the Ocala Symphony and the Reilly has been magical" and crediting Wardell with convincing the Ocala City Council not to demolish the old auditorium. Board member Toni James said: "The Reilly has been enormous for the symphony. It's totally different. We're having younger musicians, a younger audience. It's a fabulous asset."^[18]

In 2020, the Reilly Arts Center announced a $4 million expansion project to add more than 15,500 square feet to the facility, including a black box theatre and new music instruction classrooms, proceeding despite disruption from the COVID-19 pandemic.^[19]

In January 2024, the Ocala Gazette reported that Wardell would step down as chief executive of the Reilly Arts Center while continuing as music director of the Ocala Symphony Orchestra.^[20]

In January 2013, Wardell was among three finalists being considered for the position of music director of the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra. His appearance at the Charlotte Performing Arts Center was reviewed by the Florida Weekly, whose correspondent Nanette Crist described his program as "an incredibly fun night of music" and wrote that his "engaging program and easy rapport with the audience made it clear that he could be a serious competitor for the CSO music director position." Following his classical program, Crist concluded the performance was "a resounding yes" for his candidacy, writing that if his conducting was representative of what he would bring to the role, the outgoing music director's legacy "would continue to grow in fresh and exciting ways."^[21]

Wardell has appeared as a guest conductor with orchestras including the Jacksonville Symphony, the Florida Orchestra, the Chamber Orchestra of Pittsburgh, the Southwest Florida Symphony Orchestra, the New England Philharmonic, the Gainesville Orchestra, and the Pioneer Valley Symphony Orchestra.^[22]

His December 2023 appearance with the New England Philharmonic at Boston University's Tsai Performance Center was reviewed by the Boston Classical Review. The program included Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 21, the first movement of Sibelius's Violin Concerto, and the Boston premiere of Jordan Kuspa's Mystery of the Missing Music. Reviewer Jonathan Blumhofer wrote that Wardell and the orchestra "took to [the Kuspa work] with evident relish" and delivered "a lively and engaged performance."^[23]

Wardell has held academic positions at the University of South Florida, where he served as Director of Orchestral Studies, as well as teaching positions at Mount Holyoke College, Georgia Tech, and the University of Florida.^[24]

In September 2015, Wardell was elected to the District 4 seat on the Ocala City Council, defeating incumbent John McLeod by 96 votes and receiving 51.34 percent of the vote.^[25] He took office in December 2015 and ran unopposed in 2019.^[26] In August 2021, he resigned from the council, citing the growing demands of leading the Reilly Arts Center and his doctoral studies as reasons for stepping down.^[27]

In 2024, Wardell was named the first-prize winner in the professional division of The American Prize's Vytautas Marijosius Memorial Award in Orchestral Programming, a national competition recognizing excellence in concert programming by orchestras and conductors across the United States.^[28]

• Reilly Arts Center
• Boston Classical Review review, December 2023
• Florida Weekly review, January 2013