Over the past twenty-five years, David Lockington has developed an impressive conducting career in the United States. A native of Great Britain, he has served as the music director of the Grand Rapids Symphony Orchestra since January 1999 and was appointed to the position of music director of the Modesto Symphony in May 2007. He is also the former music director of the New Mexico Symphony and the Long Island Philharmonic.

Since his arrival to the United States in 1978, Lockington’s conducting activities have included serving as music director of the Cheyenne Symphony Orchestra, the Denver Young Artist's Orchestra and the Boulder Bach Festival. In addition, he was founder and conductor of the Academy in the Wilderness Chamber Orchestra and for three years held the post of assistant conductor with the Denver Symphony Orchestra and Opera Colorado.  Lockington was appointed assistant conductor of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra in September 1992 and one year later was promoted to the position of associate conductor. In May 1993, he accepted the position of music director of the Ohio Chamber Orchestra, assumed the title of music director of the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra  in September 1995 and was music director of the Long Island Philharmonic for the 1996/1997 through 1999/2000 seasons.

Lockington’s guest conducting engagements include appearances with the Saint Louis, Houston, Detroit, Seattle, Toronto, Vancouver, Colorado and Oregon symphonies, the Buffalo, Rochester and Louisiana Philharmonics and the Orchestra of St. Luke’s at Carnegie Hall. Internationally, he has conducted the China Broadcasting Symphony Orchestra in Beijing and Taiwan, led the English Chamber Orchestra on a tour in Asia and appeared with the Orquesta Sinfonica del Principado de Asturias in Spain and the Northern Sinfonia in Great Britain.

Recent and upcoming guest conducting engagements include his debuts with the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa, the Edmonton, Phoenix, Columbus (OH), North Carolina, Syracuse and Alabama symphonies as well as return engagements with the Indianapolis, Vancouver, Pacific, Nashville, San Diego and Kansas City symphonies, Louisville Orchestra and the Calgary Philharmonic. His summer festival activities include conducting appearances at the Grand Teton, San Luis Obispo Mozart, Interlochen, Chautauqua and Eastern Music festivals. In May 2005, in celebration of the orchestra’s 75th anniversary, Lockington led the Grand Rapids Symphony in a program of works by Dvorak, Goldmark and Copland at New York’s Carnegie Hall.

David Lockington began his career as a cellist and was the principal cellist with the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain for two years. After completing his Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of Cambridge, Lockington came to the United States on a scholarship to Yale University where he received his Master's degree in cello performance and studied conducting with Otto Werner Mueller. Lockington was a member of the New Haven Symphony Orchestra and served as assistant principal cellist for three years with the Denver Symphony Orchestra before turning to conducting. He is married to violinist Dylana Jenson and they reside with their four children in Grand Rapids, Michigan.