Lionel Bringuier: Music Director Designate (2025-2029)

Career. Born in Nice in 1986, Lionel Bringuier (38) has already travelled extensively throughout the world at the invitation of symphony orchestras, chamber orchestras and opera houses. He has a close relationship with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, where he worked, from 2007 to 2013, as assistant, associate and then resident conductor, a position created for him, alongside Esa-Pekka Salonen and Gustavo Dudamel. He has established a solid reputation throughout North America, working with the orchestras of Cleveland, Philadelphia, Boston, San Francisco, Montreal, Atlanta and Baltimore, as well as with the New York Philharmonic. He has also worked extensively in Asia, regularly conducting the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra and working with the Seoul and Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestras. In Australia, he has conducted the Sydney, Perth and Brisbane Symphony Orchestras.

Positions. With a strong presence throughout Europe, Lionel Bringuier has held the position of Music Director of the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich (2014–2018) and previously held the positions of Music Director of the Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León (Valladolid) (2009–2012), and Associate Conductor of the Orchestre de Bretagne and the Ensemble Orchestral de Paris. He had been Associate Artist of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Nice since 2019, where he was recently appointed Principal Conductor for the 2023–2024 and 2024–2025 seasons. The programmes he curates there also allow him to invite several of his closest musical partners, including Khatia Buniatishvili, Philippe Bianconi, Daniel Müller-Schott, Gautier Capuçon and Alexandre Tharaud for the current season.

Engagements. Lionel Bringuier's 2024–2025 season includes concerts with the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, Sydney Symphony, Queensland Symphony, China National Symphony Orchestra, and the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, as well as a tour with the Orchestre national de Metz and cellist Victor Julien-Laferrière. In previous seasons, highlights included a return to the Hollywood Bowl with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Jean-Yves Thibaudet, performances with the San Diego Symphony Orchestra and the Colburn School Orchestra in Los Angeles, as well as engagements with the Dresden Philharmonic, Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra (NOSPR Katowice), and the Luzerner Sinfonieorchester.

Discography. Bringuier collaborates regularly with pianist Yuja Wang, with whom he has recorded the Ravel Concertos for Deutsche Grammophon. He has also recorded Chopin with Nelson Freire (Decca) and Saint-Saëns with Renaud and Gautier Capuçon (Erato), who are also regular partners. He works closely with some of today's finest soloists, including Lisa Batiashvili, Anne-Sophie Mutter, Yefim Bronfman, Emanuel Ax, Leif Ove Andsnes and Janine Jansen.

Education. Born into a family of musicians, Lionel Bringuier studied cello and conducting at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse (CNSMD) in Paris, winning the prestigious Besançon International Competition for Young Conductors at the age of 19, just one year after graduating. He is passionate about education, raising awareness and developing the careers of emerging conductors and soloists. In September 2020, he was on the jury for La Maestra, the first international conducting competition for women, and continues to work with schools in Nice to introduce children to classical music and orchestral experiences.

Honours. Bringuier was made a Chevalier de l'Ordre National du Mérite by the French government and was unanimously awarded the Médaille d'Or with congratulations from the jury at the Prince Rainier III Academy of Monaco and the Médaille d'Or de la Ville de Nice.