Rafael Payare’s innate musicianship, technical brilliance and charismatic energy on the podium has elevated him as one of the most sought-after conductors. The 2024-25 season marks Rafael Payare’s third season as music director of Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal and his fifth as music director of California’s San Diego Symphony with whom his relationship has been recognized as one of the most dynamic in North America.

Payare was previously principal conductor and music director of the Ulster Orchestra from 2014 – 2019 with whom he appeared twice at the BBC Proms in 2016 and 2019. He now holds the title of vonductor laureate in recognition of the vast artistic contribution he made to the Orchestra and city of Belfast during his five-year tenure.

With his gift for communication and irresistibly joyous spirit, Rafael works with the world’s leading orchestras including the Wiener Philharmoniker, Chicago Symphony, Munchner Philharmoniker, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Berlin Staatskapelle, Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, London Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra of Europe, and the Cleveland Orchestra. Soloists with whom he has enjoyed collaborations include Daniil Trifonov, Frank Peter Zimmerman, Vilde Frang, Hilary Hahn, Maria Joao Pires, Gil Shaham, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Alisa Weilerstein, Piotr Anderszewski, Sergey Khachatryan, Emmanuel Ax, Yefim Bronfman, and Dorothea Röschmann.

Highlights of the current season include a major European tour with the Orchestre Symphonique de Montreal and return visits to The Philadelphia Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, and Royal Opera House, Covent Garden to conduct Turandot.

As an opera conductor, Payare has conducted titles at Glyndebourne Festival, the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Staatsoper Berlin, Royal Stockholm Opera and Royal Danish Opera. In July 2012, he was personally invited by his mentor, the late Lorin Maazel, to conduct at his Castleton Festival in Virginia and in July 2015 he was appointed principal conductor and conducted performances of Gounod Romeo and Juliette and a performance of Beethoven Symphony No 9 in memory of Lorin Maazel.

An inspiration to young musicians, Payare has forged a close relationship with the Royal College of Music in London where he visits every season to lead their Symphony Orchestra and has led projects with the Chicago Civic Orchestra, Orchestra of the Americas, and the Filarmonica Joven de Colombia.

Born in 1980 and a graduate of the celebrated El Sistema in Venezuela, Payare began his formal conducting studies in 2004 with José Antonio Abreu. He has conducted all the major orchestras including the Simón Bolívar Orchestra. Having also served as principal horn of the Simon Bolivar Orchestra, he took part in many prestigious tours and recordings with conductors including Giuseppe Sinopoli, Claudio Abbado, Sir Simon Rattle and Lorin Maazel. In May 2012, Payare was awarded first prize at the Malko International Conducting Competition.

Seong-Jin Cho has established himself worldwide as one of the leading pianists of his generation and most distinctive artists on the current music scene. With an innate musicality and consummate artistry, his thoughtful and poetic, virtuosic, and colorful playing can combine panache with purity and is driven by an impressive natural sense of balance. He is celebrated unanimously across the globe for his expressive magic and illuminative insights.

Seong-Jin Cho was brought to the world’s attention in 2015 when he won first prize at the Chopin International Competition in Warsaw, and his career has rapidly ascended since. In early 2016, he signed an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon and, in 2023, Cho was awarded the prestigious Samsung Ho-Am Prize in the Arts in recognition of his exceptional contributions to the world of classical music. An artist high in demand, Cho works with the world's most prestigious orchestras including Berliner Philharmoniker, Wiener Philharmoniker, London Symphony Orchestra, Concertgebouworkest, and Boston Symphony Orchestra. Conductors he regularly collaborates with include Myung-Whun Chung, Gustavo Dudamel, Andris Nelsons, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Gianandrea Noseda, Sir Antonio Pappano, Sir Simon Rattle, Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Esa-Pekka Salonen, and Lahav Shani.

In the 2024-25 season Seong-Jin Cho takes up the mantle of Artist in Residence with the Berliner Philharmoniker, a position which sees Cho work with the orchestra on multiple projects across the season including concerto performances, chamber music collaborations, on tour to the Osterfestspiele Baden-Baden, and in recital. Elsewhere, he notably returns to London’s BBC Proms, to The Philadelphia Orchestra to open their season with Yannick Nézet-Séguin, to New York Philharmonic and Chicago Symphony Orchestra with Santtu-Matias Rouvali, and to The Cleveland Orchestra under Franz Welser-Möst. Cho embarks on several international tours, including his notable return to Wiener Philharmoniker with Andris Nelsons in Korea and to Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks with Sir Simon Rattle in Korea, Japan, and Taiwan, following a performance of Brahms Piano Concerto. No. 2 in Munich.

Highly sought after in recital, Seong-Jin Cho appears in the world’s most prestigious concert halls including the main stage of the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Musikverein Wien, Alte Oper Frankfurt, KKL Luzern, Sala Santa Cecilia, Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Rudolfinum, Suntory Hall Tokyo, Festival International de Piano de la Roque d'Anthéron, and Verbier Festival. During the coming season he will present the complete solo piano music of Maurice Ravel at venues including the Wiener Konzerthaus, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Barbican Centre London, Celebrity Series at Boston Symphony Hall, Walt Disney Hall Los Angeles, and Carnegie Hall.

Seong-Jin Cho's latest recording is his solo album entitled The Handel Project, released in early 2023. In 2021, he released Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2 and Scherzi with the London Symphony Orchestra and Gianandrea Noseda for Deutsche Grammophon. He had previously recorded his first album with the same orchestra and conductor featuring Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 1 as well as the Four Ballades. His solo album titled The Wanderer was released in 2020 and features Schubert’s Wanderer Fantasy, Berg’s Piano Sonata op. 1, and Liszt’s Piano Sonata in B minor. A solo Debussy recital was also released in 2017, followed by a Mozart album with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and Yannick Nézet-Séguin in 2018. All albums have been released on the Yellow Label and have garnered impressive critical acclaim worldwide.

Born in 1994 in Seoul, Seong-Jin Cho started learning the piano at the age of six and gave his first public recital at age 11. In 2009, he became the youngest-ever winner of Japan’s Hamamatsu International Piano Competition. In 2011, he won third prize at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow at the age of 17. From 2012-2015 he studied with Michel Béroff at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris. Seong-Jin Cho is now based in Berlin.