Orchestral Conducting graduate Tianyi Lu is breaking new ground with her latest role as the first Female Conductor in Residence at Welsh National Opera.
The post is part of WNO’s ambition to address the significant gender imbalance in senior roles in conducting.
Tianyi will be one of only eight women in senior conducting roles in the UK.
Looking for the perfect #SundayRead? Why not read about our first Female Conductor in Residence, Tianyi Lu, at https://t.co/VkSeMA0h74 #WNOfemaleconductor #WNOcarmen pic.twitter.com/zcWbVZXyIq
— Welsh National Opera (@WNOtweet) August 25, 2019
During the 18-month Residence scheme Tianyi will work closely with WNO Music Director Tomáš Hanus and the WNO Orchestra across a range of repertoire, including main scale opera, as well as youth and community projects.
She’ll be mentored by British conductor Alice Farnham, who is artistic director of the Women Conductors programme at the Royal Philharmonic Society, and a Guest Conductor at the College, recently conducting our summer opera, The Gondoliers.
Tianyi Lu First Female Conductor in Residence @WNOtweet as more women seek to get the top jobs #conducting #BBCNewsTen @bbcnews pic.twitter.com/gWuzuFPkZg
— Sian Lloyd (@SianLloydnews) August 16, 2019
It was during her training at RWCMD that Tianyi first made the connection with WNO, joining the Youth and Community team on WNO Youth Opera’s award-winning production Kommilitonen!
WNO Conductor Laureate, and RWCMD Hodge International Chair Maestro Carlo Rizzi, has described her as having ‘great musicality with a natural charisma on the podium.’
Tianyi, who was born in China and raised in New Zealand, studied in Auckland and Melbourne before completing a Masters in Orchestral Conducting at RWCMD in 2015.
Tianyi Lu: “The thought of conducting didn’t even cross my mind, because I had never seen a woman in a professional context conducting before…. Even the idea of calling yourself a female conductor is unusual -> https://t.co/d1difncNLb @WNOtweet
— Audition Oracle (@auditionoracle) August 21, 2019
While at College she conducted in front of 1,500 children in venues across Wales as part of the its Orchestradventure project.
As a result of this exposure, she was invited to join top classical music agent KD Schmid for worldwide representation.
What a fantastic #orchestradventure we had this afternoon with @RoyalWelshMAMTs at @stdavidshall #year5 #RiseToMars @OscarCastellino #thankyou #wonderfulsong pic.twitter.com/QCkHTI4YpX
— Llandough Primary (@LlandoughSchool) February 13, 2018
Tianyi begins her residency this August working on a new production of Carmen as well as observing preparatory work on Rigoletto and The Cunning Little Vixen.
Find our more about RWCMD Orchestral Conducting Course.
Featured image shows Tianyi conducting in the College’s Dora Stoutzker Hall. Credit: Kiran Ridley
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