T I A N Y I L U
C O N D U C T O R
B i o g r a p h y
Tianyi Lu, Conductor
Conductor-in-Residence, Stavanger Symphony Orchestra (Norway)
Female-Conductor-in-Residence, Welsh National Opera (UK)
Principal Conductor, St. Woolos Sinfonia (UK)
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 collaborates with major orchestras and opera houses worldwide. Her work is driven by an ethos of empowerment, creating connection and compassion across diverse communities through music.
After winning First Prize at both the Sir Georg Solti International Conductors' Competition in Germany and the International Conducting Competition Guido Cantelli in Italy, Tianyi has been recently appointed Conductor-in-Residence with the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra in Norway. She is also the Female-Conductor-in-Residence with the Welsh National Opera and Principal Conductor of the St Woolos Sinfonia in the UK.
Photo Credit: Marco Borggreve
Recent highlights include concerts and recordings with the Noord Nederlands Orkest, Philharmonie Zuid-Nederland, Västerås Sinfonietta, Phion Orkest, Lapland Chamber Orchestra, Gulbenkian Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Ulster Orchestra and Sydney Symphony Orchestra. Tianyi conducted various concerts with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra as their Assistant Conductor throughout 2017-2019 and was a Dudamel Fellow with the Los Angeles Philharmonic in 2017/2018.
The 2021/2022 season sees Tianyi making her debut with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, performances of Verdi's Rigoletto at the Aalto-Musiktheater Essen, Philharmonia Orchestra, Christchurch Symphony, Malmo Symphony, Dresden Philharmonic, Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse, Helsinki Philharmonic, BBC Symphony Orchestra, San Diego Symphony, I Pomeriggi Musicali and return engagements with the Hallé orchestra, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, Seattle Symphony, Auckland Philharmonia and Dunedin Symphony.
Photo Credit: Marco Borggreve
Photo Credit: Marco Borggreve
Tianyi is based in Europe, having recently moved to The Hague, where she is loving cycling through nature, exploring new cultures, foods, languages and the sea.
Tianyi is grateful for the support of various scholarship trusts and organisations over the years, including:
The Cybec Foundation
Arts Council Wales Pathfinder Award
Prince of Wales Scholarship
Silver Medal, Worshipful Company of Musicians, London
Creative New Zealand
Kiwi Music Scholarship
Anne Bellam Scholarship
Anne Reid Scholarship
LB Wood Travelling Scholarship
Australian Postgraduate Award
Passionately committed to diversity, equity and inclusion and to building a more empathetic world through the arts, Tianyi 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, transforming cultures, resilience and wellbeing. An inspiring and eloquent communicator, Tianyi has appeared in and hosted Welsh National Opera's Podcast The O Word, has spoken as a guest for London Marathon Events and the Do More Good Podcast, and conducted and hosted Ears Wide Open concerts with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra
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. Other teachers and mentors have included Sian Edwards, Carlo Rizzi, Neemi Järvi, Alexander Polyanichko, Kenneth Kiesler, Carlo Montanaro, Eckehard Stier and Alice Farnham.
Photo Credit: Marco Borggreve