John Wilson

In 17/18 Wilson makes his debut with the Oslo Philharmonic, Bergen Philharmonic, Gothenburg Symphony, Malmö Symphony, Budapest Festival Orchestra, Hong Kong Philharmonic and Deutsches Symphonie Orchester Berlin. He returns to the Sydney Symphony, City of Birmingham Symphony, Philharmonia Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic and with the BBC Scottish Symphony he continues his focus on British and American repertoire. Highlights of Wilson’s 2016/17 season included his debuts with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in an all-Bernstein programme and with the London Symphony and Swedish Radio Symphony orchestras, receiving immediate re-invitations from both. In 2016 he made his opera debut with Glyndebourne Festival Opera to great critical acclaim, described as a “sensational success” by Opera Magazine, conducting the theatre’s first ever Madama Butterfly for their autumn tour in a new production directed by Annilese Miskimmon. In the coming seasons Wilson returns to Glyndebourne Summer Festival and will make his debut with English National Opera, both in new productions.

In 1994, Wilson formed his own orchestra, the John Wilson Orchestra, dedicated to performing music from the golden age of Hollywood and Broadway; for the past decade he has been performing with them annually at the BBC Proms and touring regularly across the UK. John Wilson and the John Wilson Orchestra record exclusively for Warner Classics (formerly EMI Classics) and their performances are broadcast regularly on television and radio.

Wilson has a large catalogue of recordings with a range of orchestras. His most recent releases include three discs of symphonic works by Copland with the BBC Philharmonic, described by Gramophone as “outstanding”, the start of his complete Copland cycle on Chandos. In November he released his first recording with the BBC Scottish Symphony of works by Richard Rodney Bennett.

Born in Gateshead, England, John Wilson studied composition and conducting at the Royal College of Music where he was taught by Joseph Horovitz and Neil Thomson and where he won all the major conducting prizes and, in 2011, was made a Fellow.

2017/18 season / 418 words. Not to be altered without permission.