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Ryan Bancroft

Conductor
Chief Conductor, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra
Principal Conductor, BBC National Orchestra of Wales
Artist in Association, Tapiola Sinfonietta

  • Raised in Los Angeles, conductor Ryan Bancroft has rapidly built an international career which takes him all over the globe working with many of the world’s leading orchestras. Since September 2021 Bancroft has been Principal Conductor of the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. In September 2023 he became Chief Conductor of the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic. He also holds the position of Artist-in-Association with the Tapiola Sinfonietta in Finland.

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  • After opening his tenure as Chief Conductor in Stockholm with the orchestra’s first performance of Sven-David Sandström’s The High Mass in 2023, Bancroft’s first two seasons have included performances of Mahler and Bruckner symphonies alongside world premieres by Chrichan Larson and Zacharias Wolfe, whilst working with renowned soloists including Emmanuel Ax, Leif Ove Andsnes, Maxim Vengerov and Víkingur Ólafsson. In 25/26, Bancroft will continue to partner important Swedish composers in Allan Pettersson, Tebogo Monnakgotla and Magnus Lindberg with established works in the classical canon by Prokofiev, Berlioz and Shostakovich.

    In August 2023 Bancroft returned to Los Angeles to make his debut with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl. In the 25/26 season he returns to conduct them at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in their subscription series which follows on from his critically acclaimed debut at the venue in April 2025. Elsewhere in the US this season he makes his debuts with the St Louis, Houston and New World Symphony Orchestras, following recent successful debuts with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, San Francisco and Dallas Symphony Orchestras. He has close relationships in Canada with the Toronto Symphony and National Arts Centre, Ottawa.


    In the 25/26 season, Bancroft will make his debuts with the London Symphony Orchestra at the Barbican with Clara-Jumi Kang, and with the NHK Symphony Orchestra in Tokyo with Thomas Hampson. He will also continue his relationships with orchestras such as the Philharmonia, the NDR Elbphilharmonieorchester, and the Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse. In recent seasons, he has led the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin at the Berlin Philharmonie, the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, the London Philharmonic, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Orquesta Sinfonica Castilla y Leon.


    Since his success at the prestigious Malko Competition for Young Conductors in 2018, where he won both First Prize and Audience Prize, Bancroft has conducted a number of other leading European orchestras including the BBC Symphony, City of Birmingham Symphony, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Danish National Symphony, Rotterdam Philharmonic and Rai Torino. 


    Bancroft has a passion for contemporary music and has performed with Ensemble Intercontemporain,  Amsterdam’s acclaimed Nieuw Ensemble, assisted Pierre Boulez in a performance of his Sur Incises in Los Angeles, premiered works by Sofia Gubaidulina, John Cage, James Tenney, Anne LeBaron, and has worked closely with improvisers such as Wadada Leo Smith and Charlie Haden.


    Bancroft studied trumpet at the California Institute of the Arts, alongside additional studies in harp, flute, cello, and Ghanaian music and dance. He then went on to receive an MMus in orchestral conducting from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. While studying in Scotland he played trumpet with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra on many occasions. He continued his conducting studies in the Netherlands and is a graduate of the prestigious Nationale Master Orkestdirectie run jointly by the Conservatorium van Amsterdam and the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague. As a student, his main mentors were Edward Carroll, Kenneth Montgomery, Ed Spanjaard and Jac van Steen.

    2025/26 season / 434 words. Not to be altered without permission.

Performances

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Livestreams & Broadcasts

Philharmonia Orchestra | March 2021


Mozart: Piano Concerto No.27 in B-flat major, K.595
Beethoven: Symphony No.5 in C minor, Op.67


Click to watch on Philharmonia Orchestra's website


Available from 25 March 2021, 7.30pm


 


Tapiola Sinfonietta | April 2021


Benjamin Britten: Les Illuminations Op. 18
Charles Ives: The Unanswered Question
Richard Strauss: Metamorphosen for 23 strings


Click to watch on YouTube 


Available from 1 April 2021, 7.00pm


 


London Philharmonic Orchestra | May 2021


Arvo Pärt: Fratres
Mozart: Symphony No.35 in D major, K.385 'Haffner'
Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto in D major, Op.35


Click to watch on Marquee TV


Available from Wednesday 12 May 2021, 8.00pm


 


Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra | May 2021


Lalo: Symphonie espagnole, Op.21
Stravinsky: Petrushka (1947 version)


Click to watch on Konserthuset Play


Available from 6 May 2021, 12:15pm

Conducting highlights

Baltimore Symphony Orchestra


BBC National Orchestra of Wales


BBC Symphony Orchestra


BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra


City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra


Danish National Symphony Orchestra


Ensemble Intercontemporain


Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra


London Philharmonic Orchestra


Malmö Symphony Orchestra


Munich Chamber Orchestra


National Arts Centre, Ottawa Orchestra


Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne


Orchestre Philharmonique du Luxembourg


Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della Rai


Philharmonia Orchestra


Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra


Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra


Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra


Stavanger Symphony Orchestra


Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra


Tapiola Sinfonietta


Toronto Symphony Orchestra

"Bancroft emphatically [shows] he is one of the most interesting conductors of his generation."

HBL Musik

"An open hearted, emotional musician."

Gramophone

"An energetic yet graceful conductor... a performance of astonishing poignancy that was beautifully conducted"

The Guardian

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Intermusica represents Ryan Bancroft worldwide

Bridget Emmerson
Deputy Chief Executive / Joint Head of Artist Management
+44 20 7608 9916
bemmerson@intermusica.com

Daniel Cummings
Artist Manager
+44 20 7608 9943
dcummings@intermusica.com

All artists

Contralto

Avery Amereau

Actor / Narrator

Amira Casar

Chansonnier

HK Gruber

Harpsichord

Richard Egarr

Piano accompanist

Roger Vignoles

Saxophone

Branford Marsalis