A conversation with Jessica Gethin

Jessica Gethin is a globally renowned, award-winning principal conductor, artistic advisor and educator, with a deep passion for music, the arts, leadership and diversity.

Inducted into the WA Women’s Hall of Fame in 2024, Jessica co-founded Perth Symphony Orchestra and has performed with symphonies, ballets, operas and film projects around the globe.

Off the podium, Jessica is a fierce advocate for the arts industry, championing gender equity, and is dedicated to nurturing the next generation of artistic leaders. She will share powerful leadership lessons and a behind the scenes look at life as a conductor, revealing the subtle nuances that define her craft.

The Executive Women’s Leadership Forum is a community of executive level, senior and future-leading women in Committee for Perth’s membership, who meet throughout the year to hear from inspiring leaders about their career and life journey.

Our speaker

Award winning Australian conductor Jessica Gethin has gained widespread attention for her stellar musicianship and vibrant energy on the podium. As one of the most versatile conductors in the country, Jessica glides seamlessly between core symphonic repertoire to ballet, opera, contemporary and film score. Jessica’s international roster includes engagements with the Sydney Symphony, Melbourne Symphony, West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Singapore Symphony, Dallas Opera, Orchestra Victoria, Perth Symphony, Malaysian Philharmonic, Tasmanian Symphony, Opera Queensland, Orchestra Macao, the West Australian Ballet and The Australian Ballet among others. Alongside her guest conducting engagements for 2024, Jessica holds the titled positions of Principal Conductor of the West Australian Ballet, Artistic Advisor of Orchestra Victoria and Head of Orchestral Studies and Conducting at the WA Academy of Performing Arts. From 2011-2019 Jessica was the Founding Chief Conductor of the Perth Symphony and is now Ambassador and lead faculty for their Women on the Podium initiative. Her accolades include being listed in Limelight Australia’s Top 20 Artists and AFR’s 100 Most Influential Women of Australia, a winner of the Brian Stacey Emerging Australian Conductor Award, a Churchill Fellow and inaugural Dallas Opera’s Hart Institute Fellow, a finalist in the West Australian of the Year Awards and inductee of the 2024 WA Women’s Hall of Fame. A passionate educator and leader in the arts space, Jessica is regularly engaged as a keynote speaker for leading organisations including the Department of Premier and Cabinet, Ernst & Young, Leadership WA and KPMG on the topics of leadership, diversity and the arts.