John Demain made his San Francisco Opera debut as music director and chorus master for Porgy and Bess in 1977 and returned to work on that same opera during the summer of 1987; he will conduct the opera again during the 2008–09 San Francisco Opera season. Formerly music director and principal conductor at Houston Grand Opera, he currently serves as artistic director of Opera Pacific and Madison Opera, and music director of the Madison Symphony. Earlier this year DeMain conducted The Tender Land at Madison Opera and Die Zauberflöte at Opera Pacific. He is a regular guest conductor at Washington National Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Michigan Opera Theater, and New York City Opera and has also conducted productions for the State Opera of South Australia, Opera Queensland, Aspen Music Festival, Baltimore Opera, the Bregenz Festival, Cleveland Opera, Cincinnati Opera, Florentine Opera Company of Milwaukee, Glimmerglass Opera, Edmonton Opera, Juilliard Opera Center, Lake George Opera, Manitoba Opera, the Teatro Belles Artes of Mexico City, Nice Opera, Opera Omaha, Opera de Puerto Rico, Opera Theater of St. Louis, San Diego Opera, Seattle Opera, and the Wexford Festival. Notable recent credits include Porgy and Bess, A Little Night Music, and The Merry Widow at Los Angeles Opera; Dead Man Walking at State Opera of South Australia; Porgy and Bess, Dead Man Walking, and Tosca at New York City Opera; Candide at the Festival Euro Mediterraneo in Rome; and A View from the Bridge at Portland Opera and Washington National Opera. Later this year he will conduct Porgy and Bess at Lyric Opera of Chicago.