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Maxim Emelyanychev

Principal Conductor


Maxim Emelyanychev has been Principal Conductor of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra since 2019. He is also Chief Conductor of period-instrument orchestra Il Pomo d’Oro, and from the 2025/26 season he becomes Principal Guest Conductor of the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra.

Born in Nizhny Novgorod, Emelyanychev made his conducting debut at the age of 12, and later joined the class of eminent conductor Gennady Rozhdestvensky at the Moscow Conservatoire.

Emelyanychev was initially appointed as the SCO’s Principal Conductor until 2022, and the relationship was later extended until 2025 and then until 2028. He has conducted the SCO at the Edinburgh International Festival and the BBC Proms, as well as on several European tours and in concerts right across Scotland. He has also made three recordings with the SCO, of symphonies by Schubert and Mendelssohn (Linn Records).

Emelyanychev has also conducted many international ensembles including the Berlin Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, St Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, New Japan Philharmonic, Seattle Symphony, Atlanta Symphony and Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.

In the opera house, Emelyanychev has conducted Mozart’s Don Giovanni in Seville’s Teatro de la Maestranza; Handel’s Rinaldo at Glyndebourne; the same composer’s Agrippina as well as Mozart’s The Magic Flute at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden; and Mozart’s Die Entführing aus dem Serail at the Opernhaus Zürich. He has also conducted Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte and Così fan tutte with the SCO at the Edinburgh International Festival. He has collaborated closely with US soprano Joyce DiDonato, including international touring and several recordings, and also with Polish countertenor Jakub Józef Orliński, with whom he has made two recordings.

Emelyanychev is also a noted pianist, harpsichordist and organist. He has given a recital at Paris’s Théâtre des Champs-Elysées with violinist Aylen Pritchin, and has performed Schubert’s Winterreise with Joyce DiDonato at the Berlin Staatsoper, London’s Wigmore Hall, and in Dortmund and Antwerp. He was awarded a 2013 Golden Mask award as harpsichordist in the Perm Opera production of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro, conducted by Teodor Currentzis.

Among his other recordings are keyboard sonatas by Mozart, and violin sonatas by Brahms with Aylen Pritchin. He has also launched a project to record Mozart’s complete symphonies with Il Pomo d’Oro. In 2019, he won the Critics’ Circle Young Talent Award and an International Opera Award in the newcomer category. He received the 2025 Herbert von Karajan Award at the Salzburg Easter Festival.

Photo: Andrej Grilc

Maxim's 2025/26 Season

  1. Maxim Conducts the Orchestra and the chorus sings

    Gloria!

    Choral

    Edinburgh
    Glasgow
    Exhilarating choral splendours from across two centuries, with the magnificent SCO Chorus and an exceptional line-up of vocal soloists.
  2. Stained glass window depicting Virgin Mary, Joseph and the infant son

    L'Enfance du Christ

    Choral

    Edinburgh
    Glasgow
    Welcome the coming festive season with one of the tenderest, most captivating Christmas pieces ever created.
  3. A blue nutcracker soldier is featured with a blue glistening backdrop.

    The Nutcracker

    Perth
    Edinburgh
    Glasgow
    Maxim Emelyanychev invites you to immerse yourself in all the sugar, snow and sparkle of the composer’s full ballet score.
  4. Nicola Benedetti plays the violin.

    Benedetti plays Mendelssohn

    Edinburgh
    Glasgow
    Mendelssohn’s exhilarating Violin Concerto is the ideal showcase for the world-renowned Scottish violin virtuoso’s consummate talents.
  5. Baroque Inspirations

    Edinburgh
    Glasgow
    Maxim Emelyanychev returns with an annual highlight of the SCO Season, rediscovering the musical splendours of the Baroque.
  6. Maxim Emelyanychev sits at the keys. He smiles off to his left. He wears a black suit and bowtie.

    Maxim & Friends

    Matinee

    Edinburgh
    Experience the exceptional artistry of SCO Principal Conductor Maxim Emelyanychev as he showcases his passion for chamber music.
  7. A portrait of Mozart with the 25/26 Season branding overlay.

    Mozart’s Last Three Symphonies

    Edinburgh
    Glasgow
    Aberdeen
    Discover – or rediscover – the compelling power of Mozart's last three symphonies as Maxim brings his vibrant visions to Scotland.
  8. A cross section photograph of a bridge

    Dvořák 'New World' Symphony

    Perth
    Edinburgh
    Glasgow
    Join Maxim and the SCO musicians for an electrifying and emotional conclusion to the Season.