Leonard Elschenbroich

Described by the New York Times as “a musician of great technical prowess, intellectual curiosity and expressive depth,” Leonard Elschenbroich has performed with some of the world’s leading orchestras. A celebrated and award-winning cellist, his journey towards conducting began when he co-founded the Orquesta Filarmonica de Bolivia, the first orchestra in the nation’s history to perform a Mahler Symphony, in 2012, and whom he still visits regularly for concerts and educational projects. This experience led him to explore the art of conducting further with orchestras across Europe and Latin America, eventually pursuing a Master’s degree at Berlin’s Hanns Eisler Musikhochschule, studying orchestra, choral and opera conducting with Christian Ehwald and Markus Stenz, from which he graduated in 2023.

Recent conducting debuts include the Residentie Orkest, the London Mozart Players,and Konzerthausorchester Berlin. Leonard was the Assistant Conductor of The Dutch National Opera’s co-premiere of Kaija Saariaho’s Innocence, and he was promptly re-invited to return in 2025/26 for the world premiere of a new opera by Michel van der Aa. This season, he conducts the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra at Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde in London with soloists Claire Barnett-Jones (mezzo-soprano) and Peter Hoare (tenor) and the Corinthian Orchestra, with whom he appears regularly, as well as an evening concert at the Amsterdam Cello Biënnale and the grand final of the Dutch National Cello Competition.

As a cellist, highlights of Leonard’s career include his Vienna Musikverein debut on a European Tour with the Staatskapelle Dresden, his US debut with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, his Asian debut with the Japan Philharmonic at Suntory Hall Tokyo, and five appearances at the Royal Albert Hall for the BBC Proms. He has released a number of critically acclaimed concerto and chamber recordings on the Onyx Classics label.

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