Before she ever heard the word patriarchy, Chloé Dufresne wanted to be a conductor.

At 10 she performed in a children’s choir conducted by a woman, and ever since then it’s all she’s ever wanted.

“What I liked was this person was in the middle of everything and taking care of everything,” the French-born Dufresne said from Paris. “Everyone was going on and off the stage. The conductor and orchestra were the only ones staying all along. And also the arm movements. It looked like magic. Very attractive.”

Dufresne will guest conduct the Colorado Springs Philharmonic during Saturday and Sunday’s “Mozart and Haydn” concerts at Ent Center for the Arts. A guest violinist, the Armenian-born Diana Adamyan, winner of the 2018 Yehudi Menuhin International Competition, also will perform.

The award-winning Dufresne is one of 10 guest conductors during the Philharmonic’s 97th season. The nonprofit is searching for a new music director and conductor, though Dufresne is not necessarily auditioning for the role.

This weekend’s program features Mozart’s “Violin Concert No. 5,” his most famous concerto, and Haydn’s last symphony, “Symphony No. 104 — London.” Rounding out the performance are works by two French composers: Gabriel Fauré’s “Masques et Bergamasques” and Lili Boulanger’s “D’un Matin De Printemps.”

“The two French pieces are small ones to introduce the French style,” Dufresne said. “It’s (the French style) a quite transparent sound. The Boulanger piece is fresh and light orchestration. French music also has very delicate changing harmonies.”

In 2021, The New York Times reported that in 2016 about 9% of music directors from 174 American ensembles of all sizes were women, according to the League of American Orchestras. Dufresne is familiar with the large discrepancy between male and female conductors. She believes it’s mostly due to global patriarchy.

“There have been women conductors from the past, a lot, but we forget them,” she said. “When they write music history they don’t mention their name. We have forgotten them and we are always starting from the beginning. Since #MeToo that has changed. Women are a bit more present and a bit more strong and fighting with that.”

Of course, a 10-year-old Dufresne had no idea she might be up against such odds. She simply proceeded in the direction of her passion. Not only did she sing, but she also studied viola. In 2020 she got her master’s in orchestral conducting from Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, and during her studies she conducted the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Sinfonia Lahti, Joensuu City Orchestra and others.

“I have been lucky,” she said. “I arrived in a period where it is easier for women to appear in front of an orchestra. The choir conductor I saw as a child was a woman. I studied conducting without having this question in my head. It came later with working in the field. I mostly have been pushed to do it by my teachers and supported.”

Contact the writer: 636-0270

What: “Mozart and Haydn” by Colorado Springs Philharmonic, with conductor Chloé Dufresne and violinist Diana Adamyan

When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday

Where: Ent Center for the Arts, 5225 N. Nevada Ave.

Price: $35.75-$92; 719-255-8181, csphilharmonic.org, entcenterforthearts.org

Something else: Pre-concert talks with conductors and guest artists, one hour before performance time

Chloé Dufresne will guest conduct the Colorado Springs Philharmonic during Saturday and Sunday’s “Mozart and Haydn” concerts at Ent Center for the Arts.

Courtesy photo

Award-winning French conductor Chloé Dufresne will guest conduct the Colorado Springs Philharmonic during Saturday and Sunday’s “Mozart and Haydn” concerts at Ent Center for the Arts. Photo by Petar Naydenov