Conductor
Italy
“She showed not only complete mastery on the podium, but also mature understanding of the various pieces…and a physical presence that would be very engaging for any audience”
(Sir Andrew Davis, Chief Conductor of BBC Symphony Orchestra, Music Director of Lyric Opera of Chicago)
Internationally known for her thrilling energy on the podium, her deeply creative approach and her open-hearted style of leadership, Chinese-born New Zealander Tianyi Lu, who is now based in Europe, collaborates with major orchestras and opera houses worldwide.
After winning First Prize at both the “Sir Georg Solti” International Conductors’ Competition in Germany and the International Conducting Competition “Guido Cantelli” in Italy (2020), Tianyi Lu has been appointed Conductor-in-Residence with the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra in Norway and Principal Conductor of the St Woolos Sinfonia in the UK.
Recent highlights include concerts and recordings with the Philharmonia Orchestra London, Hallé Orchestra Manchester, Malmö Symphony Orchestra, MDR Sinfonieorchester Leipzig, Dresden Philharmonie, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Seattle Symphony, Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, and Sydney Symphony Orchestra. A former Dudamel Fellow, in July 2021 Lu made her Hollywood Bowl debut with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and subsequently returned for her Disney Hall debut in April 2023. In autumn 2021, Lu conducted performances of Rigoletto at the Aaltotheater Essen.
In the 2024/2025 season Tianyi Lu made her debut at the BBC Proms in London with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, she also makes debuts with the New York Philharmonic, San Diego Symphony, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Orchestra Regionale della Toscana in Italy, and Staatsorchester Stuttgart. Return engagements include re-invitations to the London Philharmonic Orchestra, MDR Sinfonieorchester Leipzig, Seattle Symphony, Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, Duisburger Philharmoniker, and Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, among others.
Tianyi completed her Bachelor of Music with First Class Honours at the University of Auckland with Uwe Grodd and Karen Grylls, before studying at the University of Melbourne with John Hopkins. In 2015 she completed her Master of Music in Orchestral Conducting with Distinction at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, where she studied with David Jones.
She has assisted or attended masterclasses with Sir Andrew Davis and Xian Zhang with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Daniele Gatti with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Bernard Haitink with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, and is an alumni of the Hart Institute for Women Conductors at The Dallas Opera.
Passionately committed to diversity, equity and inclusion and to building a more empathetic world through the arts, Tianyi Lu is an Artist Ambassador for Opera for Peace and is regularly invited to work with and speak to communities and institutions about her experiences in empowering leadership and transforming cultures through the music.
