Board and Administration

Donn Wilkerson serves as Chair of the Board of the Monterey Symphony, bringing to the role a lifelong devotion to music as both an art form and a force for human connection. A composer, producer, conductor, arranger and orchestrator whose career spans five decades, he has worked across an unusually broad musical landscape—concert music, musical theater, jazz, film and television, orchestral pops and production music—while remaining rooted in a deep love of the symphonic tradition.

His musical path began in childhood through guitar studies in Denver, with a growing fascination with the emotional and spiritual power of music. Studies at Berklee College of Music and advanced composition studies in Los Angeles shaped his foundation as a composer and orchestrator, while an early encounter with Symphony No. 1 (Mahler) proved transformational, turning his focus toward orchestral writing.

That path led to a distinguished career in Los Angeles, where Wilkerson contributed as composer, producer, conductor, arranger and orchestrator to major live productions, film and television projects, and orchestral presentations. His work, recognized in part through two Emmy nominations, has involved collaborations connected with Quincy Jones, Lalo Schifrin and Elmer Bernstein, among others, as well as music for major broadcast events, symphonic productions, touring theatrical spectacles and international media. Over the years he has built a substantial catalog of original music licensed worldwide, with his work heard across thousands of productions and in more than 100 countries.

Alongside his commercial and orchestral work, Wilkerson has continued to pursue deeply personal creative projects, including reimagined classical works and musical theater. Throughout his career he has viewed music not simply as profession, but as a lifelong practice of discovery—an expression of beauty, compassion and shared humanity.

Since relocating to the Monterey Peninsula, that philosophy has deepened into arts advocacy and cultural stewardship. As Chair of the Monterey Symphony Board, he is committed to supporting artistic excellence, strengthening the Symphony's role as a cultural cornerstone for the region, and expanding its reach through community connection, education and visionary growth.

He believes the great music of the past and the voices of living composers together carry an enduring message of wonder, beauty, uplift and human possibility—and that orchestras remain among society's most vital keepers of that flame.