Catherine Comet (born 1944)[1] is a French-born, American conductor who, from 1986 to 1997, was the music director of the Grand Rapids Symphony in Grand Rapids, Michigan, becoming the first woman to hold a post as music director of a professional orchestra in the United States.
She subsequently began studying the piano with a pianist who lived in her neighborhood.
This enabled Comet to focus more intensely on her musical training during her youth, which ultimately prepared her for admission to the Paris Conservatory.
[4] From 1984 to 1986, Comet was associate conductor of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.
[6] Following her tenure in Grand Rapids, she served as a guest conductor for numerous other orchestras, including the Quad Cities Symphony in Davenport, Iowa in 2004.