The former artistic director of Opera Boston, which ceased operations abruptly in December due to severe financial issues, has a new job — one that will get him out of the city during the summer months.

On Monday, the Monadnock Music Board of Directors announced the hiring of Gil Rose as the organization’s new artistic director, a job that’s been vacant since October, when a management-structure reorganization led to the departure of longtime co-artistic directors Jonathan Bagg and Laura Gilbert.

Rose is well-known both in Boston music circles and nationally. In 1996, he founded the Boston Modern Orchestra Project, a professional orchestra dedicated exclusively to performing and recording modern and contemporary music.

He joined Opera Boston as its music director in 2003 and in 2010 he was appointed as the company’s first artistic director. He has led Opera Boston in several American and New England premieres and in 2009 led the world premiere of Zhou Long’s “Madame White Snake,” which won the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 2011.

In 2007, Rose was awarded Columbia University’s Ditson Award as well as an American Society for Composers, Authors and Publishers Concert Music award for exemplary commitment to new American music. He is a three-time Grammy Award nominee.

“I’ve always been interested in performing unusual works,” Rose said in a phone interview on Wednesday. “My interest is in exploring the full gamut of the repertoire, both for orchestra and opera. I like to present the less-famous works.”

Rose has been a guest conductor nationally and internationally for many opera companies and orchestras. He has led the American Composers Orchestra, Warsaw Philharmonic, National Symphony Orchestra of the Ukraine, Cleveland Chamber Symphony, Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana and National Orchestra of Porto and has made several appearances with the Boston Symphony Chamber Players.

Rose said he had been aware for years of the outstanding reputation of Monadnock Music’s founder, Jim Bolle. He said he was intrigued when the artistic director job was posted and decided to apply.

“Monadock Music is different than other festivals,” he said. “It’s not just chamber music. It has potential for many different formats to be worked in. One of my goals will be to keep things fresh and exciting.”

In announcing the appointment, which takes effect Feb. 1, Will Chapman, Monadnock Music’s executive director, said the board chose Rose from a pool of more than 70 candidates.

“Gil’s vision, his enormous and distinguished orchestral and operatic experience, as well as his diverse interests in chamber music, vocal, new and early music truly excited the selection committee and the Board of Directors,” Chapman said in the announcement. “Critical also was finding a person who, much like our founder James Bolle, lives within easy reach of Peterborough and has similarly recognized broad interests and capabilities as a programmer.”

Rose said he plans to live in the Monadnock region during Monadnock Music’s summer season and will be traveling regularly to Peterborough from his home in Boston throughout the year. He will continue to run the Boston Modern Orchestra Project, which offers performances of contemporary orchestral music regularly both in Boston and at sites throughout New England.
Rose is also currently a lecturer at Tufts University.

“That will be ending this spring,” he said of his responsibilities at Tufts. “I’ll be concentrating on Monadnock Music and on the orchestra.”

He said possible collaborations with the Boston Modern Orchestra Project could be in the works, but it is too early to have specific programming plans.

“I’ve started working on ideas. I’m interested in bring in exciting performances that have some resonance,” he said. “Change for change sake isn’t something to jump into quickly. I want to see what’s good and look at new angles — see what a fresh set of eyes can see.”

He said it will be important to bring in excellent performers and also use local talent to its full extent.

“I’m looking forward to getting to know New Hampshire musicians. It’s important to get to know folks in the community. That’s one of the attractive parts of the job.”

Chapman, who had worked with Rose at Opera Boston prior to coming to Monadnock Music, said Rose’s hiring is a key step in Monadnock Music’s effort to increase the range of offerings and maximize the impact of the festival.

“We want to build on the legacy of Jim Bolle, and really serve the community,” he said. “We want to make sure we’re not duplicating what’s being done elsewhere. Gil and I will be looking ahead to 2016, which will be the 50th anniversary of Monadnock Music. We’re excited to start thinking about what it will look like at that point.”

Chapman said planning for the 2012 summer season is on schedule, with programming to be announced probably in May or June.

Rose, who lives in Boston, has a 12-year-old daughter and a 9-year-old son. He shares parenting duties with his ex-wife, and said he expects his children “will be spending a lot of time hanging out in the summer in Peterborough.”

He’s started working on finding living arrangements in the area for the summer and says he’s looking forward to making regular hour-and-a-half drives to Peterborough in the meantime.
“It’s so nice to come up over the mountain and leave metro Boston behind,” he said.

Rose will be at Monadnock Music’s annual meeting on Feb. 1 at 5 p.m. in the Peterborough Historical Society’s Bass Hall. The meeting is for incorporators, trustees and invited guests.

This article appeared in the Jan. 26, 2012, edition of the Ledger-Transcript.