James Ross (conductor)

Career

Ross studied at Harrow School, and later at Christ Church, Oxford from where he received an MA in Modern History (1993), an MSt in Music (1994), and a DPhil in French opera (1998) awarded the Donald Tovey Prize. He was also a finalist in the 1998 BBC Philharmonic Conducting Competition.

Since graduating he has conducted over 950 works in fifteen countries throughout Western and Eastern Europe, North America and Asia, and in Westminster Abbey and leading UK concert halls including the Royal Festival Hall and St. John's, Smith Square, London, Symphony Hall, Birmingham and the Sheldonian Theatre, Oxford, where he performed Beethoven's 9th Symphony for the 350th anniversary in 2014. In 2013 he gave the first orchestral concert at Sri Lanka's new national performing arts venue, The Nelum Pokuna Theatre, with the Commonwealth Festival Orchestra. He is music director of the Oxford Opera Company, the Christ Church Festival Orchestra, and from 2006 the Sidcup Symphony Orchestra. Previous positions include with Oxford University Sinfonietta and St Albans Symphony Orchestra. He has conducted numerous first performances of new works, including by composers such as Tunde Jegede, Philip Sheppard (musician) and Geoffrey Alvarez, at London's Saatchi Gallery, and for Queen Elizabeth II at Commonwealth Day at Westminster Abbey. Ross is also a director of global classical music production company and consultancy Ulysses Arts.

Publications

James Ross has co-written several books and articles on music, including Music in the French Salon, French Music Since Berlioz, Vincent d'Indy l'interprete, and Messidor: Republican Patriotism and the French Revolutionary Tradition in Third Republic Opera. His work has also been published in journals including The English Historical Review, Opera (magazine), The Musical Times and Music & Letters.