Paul Winberg

As President and CEO of the Grant Park Music Festival, Paul Winberg leads one of the country’s premier summer music festivals distinguished by an 87-year history of outstanding artistic leadership, eclectic programming, and housed in one of the most stunning outdoor concert facilities in the world—the Jay Pritzker Pavilion designed by Frank Gehry. During its 10-week season, the Festival, featuring the critically acclaimed Grant Park Orchestra and Chorus, produces more than 250 free concerts and events serving nearly one million Chicagoan’s and visitors from around the world.

Since joining the Festival in November 2011, Winberg has initiated numerous projects that have transformed the Festival’s profile and expanded its reach into the Chicago community. He spearheaded a series of Festival performances in neighborhood parks, created an annual commissioning program, a composer residency initiative, a pre-concert conversation series, and a partnership with the Chicago Sinfonietta providing pre-professional development opportunities for musicians of color. He also directed the development of multi-disciplinary performances in partnership with KV265, Chicago’s Adler Planetarium, and the MacArthur Foundation. More recently, Winberg further expanded the Festival’s programming footprint with the launch of Festival Next, a series of masterclasses, chamber music performances, and multimedia performance projects.