Tugan Sokhiev

Tugan Sokhiev became Music Director of Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse at the start of the 2008/2009 season, following three years as its Principal Guest Conductor and Artistic Adviser. He also enjoys a close association with the Mariinsky Theatre. During his collaboration with the Orchestre National du Capitole, he has conducted many critically acclaimed concerts in France, Germany, Vienna, Ljubljana, Zagreb, San Sebastian and Valencia. His first two recordings for Naïve Classique – which include Tchaikovsky Fourth Symphony, Mussorgsky Pictures and Prokofiev Peter and the Wolf – received remarkablere views.

His UK opera debut La bohème for Welsh National Opera in 2002, was followed by a number of further productions and he made his debut with Metropolitan Opera Company, New York, with Eugene Onegin in 2003. His acclaimed Philharmonia Orchestra debut with Rachmaninov Symphony No. 2 the same year immediately let to a closer association and he has appeared with them each season since.

He also quickly established himself in Europe, guest conducting in Strasbourg, Montpellier, Frankfurt and elsewhere; notable debuts included Swedish Radio, Vienna Radio and Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestras. He also made a highly acclaimed first visit to the 2004 Aix-en-Provence Festival (Love of Three Oranges), followed by most successful revivals for the Grand Théâtre de la Ville de Luxembourg in 2005 and for the Teatro Real, Madrid in Autumn 2006. In August 2005 he replaced Lorin Maazel at short notice with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, to outstanding reviews and was immediately re-invited. Other highlights of these years included return visits to the Philharmonia, the Swedish Radio Orchestra and his debut with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra

2005/2006 included productions of The Golden Cockerel, Iolanta, Samson and Delilah and Eugene Onegin for the Mariinsky Theatre and his much-praised Boris Godunov for Houston Grand Opera. He also made first visits to Oslo Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw and Munich Philharmonic Orchestras. During the season, he gave concerts in Paris with Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Orchestre National de France and with Orchestre National du Capitole, to outstanding reviews. His performance in the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées with Orchestre National du Capitole resulted in his being named ‘Révélation musicale de l'année’ by the French Critics’ Union.

More recent seasons have included immensely successful debuts with Orquesta Nacional de España, RAI Turin (his first collaboration with Argerich) and La Scala’s concert series, as well as returns to orchestras such as Philharmonia, Finnish Radio, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Bournemouth Symphony, Orchestre National de France, Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra and Orchestra of the Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich. His remarkable concert performances of Ekaterina Ismailova with Orchestre National de France in 2007/2008 are due for commercial release shortly.

Guest conducting during the current season and beyond includes debuts with Santa Cecilia, Fondazione Arturo Toscanini, his NHK Symphony debut, televised live from Tokyo’s Suntory Hall, and the National Philharmonic of Russia. His schedule also includes regular visits to Finnish Radio, Orchestra National de France, subscription and touring appearances with DSO Berlin, Mahler Chamber Orchestra and the Philharmonia Orchestra. His regular Mariinsky Theatre commitments include many new productions and plans for Toulouse in 2009/2010 include further recordings, extensive touring, including the orchestra’s first Far East tour under his leadership; and a series of opera productions at the Théâtre du Capitole and elsewhere.

This is for information only and should not be reproduced. Please contact Christoph Kahlert for an up-to-date biography.