Charlotte Symphony conductor wins first Grammy in CSO history + gives emotional speech
Maestro Kwamé Ryan conducted himself into the history books Sunday as the first Charlotte Symphony music director to win a Grammy Award.
Ryan won the Grammy for Best Opera Recording for the Houston Grand Opera production of composer Jake Heggie’s “Intelligence.” The librettist was Gene Scheer.
Ryan also is the first music director of the 94-year-old orchestra to have been nominated for a Grammy.
He has a knack for history. In 2023, Ryan became the first person of color named to lead the Charlotte Symphony. He’s now in his second season as music director.
In his acceptance speech, Ryan began by thanking the Recording Academy “for this recognition, which means so much. Speaking for myself, personally, as a Black conductor, we’re a small demographic but getting less so one generation at a time. And moments like these could be so inspirational for the people who will follow.”
Ryan thanked the creative team, including Heggie and Scheer, and Houston Grand Opera.
“And on a personal note, I’d like to thank my partner, my family and my incredible group of friends at Charlotte Symphony Orchestra for showering me with support, which makes moments like this possible.”
In a statement Sunday night, Charlotte Symphony President and CEO David Fisk congratulated Ryan on his win.
“Kwamé Ryan’s Grammy win reflects what audiences in Charlotte experience every time he steps on the podium,” Fisk said. “We are incredibly proud of Kwamé and this well-deserved honor.
“He brings extraordinary clarity, emotional depth and purpose to the music, and this recognition underscores the artistic vision shaping the future of the Charlotte Symphony.”
Kwamé Ryan and the Grammys
This is also the first time Ryan had been nominated for a Grammy. He told The Charlotte Observer he learned about the nomination when Heggie texted him a screenshot of the Grammy website after they were announced in November.
Growing up on Trinidad, Ryan eagerly watched the Grammys, a show that reflected his eclectic taste in music beyond classical.
But when asked if he ever thought he’d be nominated for a Grammy, Ryan had a quick response, one that was offered with a smile: “No. It’s an easy answer.”
About the Grammy Awards and ‘Intelligence’
All told, there are nearly 100 Grammy categories. The vast majority were handed out Sunday afternoon before the prime-time ceremony for the 68th annual Grammy Awards on CBS and streaming on Paramount+ at Crypto.com Arena.
The earlier ceremony was streamed live on Sunday on the Recording Academy’s YouTube channel and live.Grammy.com
The Best Opera Recording award recognizes the conductor, album producers, principal soloists, and the composer and librettist, if applicable, of a world premiere opera recording.
Along with Ryan, soloists mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton, mezzo-soprano J’Nai Bridges, soprano Janai Brugger; and album producer Blanton Alspaugh were nominated for “Intelligence.”
“Intelligence” tells the story of a pair of unlikely female spies: one is from a prominent Confederate family in Virginia and the other was born into slavery and served that family. It was inspired by the true story of Civil War spies Elizabeth Van Lew and Mary Jane Bowser.
The album was recorded during the opera’s world premiere in fall 2023 and released in August 2025.
Houston Grand Opera was founded in 1955. It had previously won two other Grammys, in 1988 for Best Contemporary Composition for “Nixon in China,” and in 1977 for Best Opera Recording for “Porgy and Bess.”
.png "image (70).png")
Ryan and the “Intelligence” album beat out four other opera recordings. The other nominees in the category were: “An American Soldier”, “Adoration,” “Trade & Mary Motorhead” and “Grounded.”
Charlotte audiences will get the chance to hear one of the “Intelligence” performers in person this spring. Brugger will join Ryan and the Charlotte Symphony in late March for concerts that explore the world of home, culminating in Dvořák’s “New World” Symphony.
Snows Charlotte vs. sunny LA
Ryan almost didn’t make it to the Grammys ceremony this weekend.
As 12 to 16 inches of snow began blanketing the Charlotte region Saturday into Sunday morning, more than 1,000 flights out of Charlotte Douglas International Airport were canceled on Saturday.
Ryan had been scheduled to conduct a Prokofiev and Schumann concert Saturday night at Knight Theater, and then turn the baton over to resident conductor Christopher James Lees for the Sunday afternoon show so he could attend fly to Los Angeles for the Grammys.
But Saturday morning, as the snow kept falling and road conditions deteriorated, the CSO called off the remaining weekend performances. After that decision was made, Ryan changed his travel plans and somehow managed to successfully get an earlier flight out of town.
In Los Angeles on Sunday, it was partly sunny, with a high of 81 degrees. Back in Charlotte, another 800 flights were canceled by 10 a.m. Sunday.
In Los Angeles, Ryan wasn’t done making history — He also is the first Black conductor to win Best Opera Recording category in Grammy history.
More arts coverage
Want to see more stories like this? Sign up here for our free, award-winning “Inside Charlotte Arts” newsletter: charlotteobserver.com/newsletters. You can join our Facebook group, “Inside Charlotte Arts,” by going here: facebook.com/groups/insidecharlottearts. And all of our 2025-26 Fall Arts Guide story can be found here: charlotteobserver.com/topics/charlotte-fall-arts-guide.
This story was originally published February 1, 2026 at 7:27 PM.