The Ulster Orchestra season opens with fantastic news: Daniele Rustioni will continue to work with the orchestra for a further two years. In recognition of the formidable artistic leadership he gives the Ulster Orchestra, his title formally changes to Music Director.
Of his appointment, Daniele Rustioni says:
«The Ulster Orchestra family welcomed me from my very first day, and it feels very special and natural to now become the Music Director of this cultural jewel. Our recent BBC Prom together confirmed our unique bond through the highest level of music making at the world’s premier classical festival and we have so many wonderful plans in the next years for all of you. I look forward to sharing fabulous symphonic concerts and broadcasts together.»
Ulster Orchestra Managing Director Richard Wigley says:
«The news of Daniele becoming our Music Director and extending his contract to 2024 fulfils the highest ambitions we all share. Daniele is an international superstar and he is also one of us; we couldn’t be more pleased that he has committed to Northern Ireland at a time when he can choose to go anywhere in the world. On a personal note, I have now known Daniele for almost two decades and it is so good to be able to share his shining talent and magic across NI and beyond. The concerts with Daniele and the Orchestra are rapidly becoming legend – there’s never been a better time to join us.»
Daniele Rustioni opens the Season on Friday 23 September, conducting Richard Strauss’s epic Ein Heldenleben, while the phenomenal pianist Sir Stephen Hough performs Brahm’s tempestuously dramatic Piano Concerto No. 2. And epic is a fitting description of all the works Daniele will conduct this series – everything from the birth of the universe to a musical trip to his homeland of Italy! You can marvel at the explosion of light bursting forth in Haydn’s The Creation(performed with Belfast Philharmonic Choir), explore the vast cathedral of sound that is Bruckner’s Seventh Symphony, wander in Respighi’s Pines of Romeand more, under his baton.
Founded in 1966, the Ulster Orchestra has been at the forefront of musical life in Northern Ireland and in 2019/20, Daniele Rustioni became its Chief Conductor. The Orchestra performs around 40 concerts a year in its home, the Ulster Hall, and the Waterfront Hall, Belfast.
With a mission to enrich the lives of people living in Northern Ireland, those visiting, and those who encounter it through international touring and regular radio and TV broadcasts with the BBC, the Orchestra strives for excellence in all it undertakes, be it concert performances, learning and community engagement programmes, or creative collaborations across the arts. An important aspect of the Ulster Orchestra’s work across Northern Ireland is its annual touring programme of concerts, which brings live orchestral music to the heart of communities across the region.