Dr. Garret Jones is moving up – and moving down.
Moving down from the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra offices on the first floor of the Epic Center to the lower level offices of the Stulberg International String Competition. And moving up from senior director of administration at the KSO to executive director of the Stulberg, which is currently celebrating its 50th anniversary.
“We did do a national search,” said Stulberg Board of Directors President Janet Gover. “We had applicants from all over the country and we ended up with the best candidate right in our backyard. So, we’re very happy about that. It really speaks to the quality of Kalamazoo candidates.”
The 35-year-old Jones is also a clarinetist with the KSO, who performed two shows of “The Nutcracker” Saturday. “I’ve been playing on that side of the orchestra for about four years now,” Jones said, “and I’m going to keep doing that because it’s, you know, the side of the artistic side of everything that I love doing.”
Originally from the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas area, Jones moved to Kalamazoo five years ago after earning his doctorate in clarinet at the University of Michigan: “I’ve been doing a lot of amazing things and learning a whole lot about the city and the arts community here, which is so incredibly diverse. It’s really just magical like Kalamazoo has to offer.”
He discovered the Stulberg early on. “It really didn’t take long for me, working at the Symphony, to get exposed to the Stulberg itself and see what’s so incredibly unique about it,” Jones said. “There’s so many string competitions out there, but none of them are like the Stulberg. Nothing offers what it does and it creates really exceptional experiences for young musicians.”
When “the musicians of tomorrow,” as Jones calls them, participate in the Stulberg “to experience their master classes, the competitions, or any other events, they leave with kind of a permanent handprint of the Stulberg on them. And so they carry that for the rest of their careers. And we’re really proud of that, that we are able to provide that for these young musicians.”
Jones’ music career began in seventh grade. “I started in beginning band, like a lot of people do, playing clarinet, and it stuck with me. It was what I was good at and what I loved doing and so stuck with it through high school, through college, two master’s degrees, and a doctorate. So, you know, I went all the way and did all of the things and met a lot of people along the way. And it speaks a lot to what I’m hoping to bring to the Stulberg: all of these connections and relationships that I’ve developed throughout my career. You know, you talk about the music world, everything is intertwined. Everybody knows everybody because it’s such a collaborative environment, and that’s what makes it so special. So, I truly love what I do now and what has prepared me to come into this role and just grow this organization into its next 50 years.”
The next Stulberg competition is slated for May 2026 and preparations are already underway. Jones’ other goals include “starting to plan some growth initiatives for us to reach out and expand the brand and the renown of the organization to more international channels and throughout the national sphere of the orchestra world. Reaching out and building relationships with other orchestra executive directors and CEOs, trying to explore some opportunities to connect our young artists with performance opportunities in other orchestras, to provide a platform for them to then go off and take the Stulberg name with them as a career-building advantage for them and what they’re looking to do.”