Elim Chan
conductor
About this Artist
One of the most sought-after artists of her generation, Elim Chan performs an unusually wide-ranging repertory of symphonic works extending from the Classical period to the present day. The Sunday Times (London) described Elim Chan as “a rare example of a young conductor at once brilliant and not in the least showing off.” In January 2022, Boston Classical Review spoke of a “marvel of control and understanding” following Chan’s debut with the Boston Symphony Orchestra: “…Chan was the night’s revelation. As a conductor, she’s the embodiment of the principle that less is more. Like Fritz Reiner or Bernard Haitink, she’s not overly demonstrative on the podium. But her beat is clear, gestures economical, and cues precise. Also, she has an exceptionally sensitive ear.”
Chan was guest conductor of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra from 2018 to 2023 and has been principal conductor of the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra since 2019. In the 2023/24 season—her last as its chief conductor—she presented the orchestra in the Benelux with, among others, Gustav Mahler’s Fourth Symphony and soloists including Sol Gabetta and Midori.
Highlights of the 2023/24 season also include debuts with the Salzburg Festival, the Orchestre de Paris, the Staatskapelle Berlin, the Staatskapelle Dresden, and the New York Philharmonic. Further debuts in North America occurred with the Orchestre Métropolitain in Montreal as well as the Minnesota Orchestra and Seattle Symphony. In Europe, first collaborations took place with the Danish National Orchestra and the radio orchestras of the German broadcasters SWR, RSB, and WDR. Chan also returned to the Los Angeles Philharmonic and St. Louis Symphony Orchestra as well as the Oslo Philharmonic, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, and the Philharmonia Orchestra in London. In spring 2023, the Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León announced a three-year collaboration with Chan as associate conductor, focusing on Stravinsky’s ballets.
A native of Hong Kong, Elim Chan studied at Smith College, in Northampton, MA, and at the University of Michigan. In 2014, she was the first female winner of the Donatella Flick Conducting Competition, which enabled her to spend the 2015/16 season as assistant conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, where she worked closely with Valery Gergiev. For the following season, Chan joined the Dudamel Fellowship program of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. She also owes much to the support and encouragement of Bernard Haitink, whose master classes she attended in Lucerne in 2015. In recent seasons, Chan celebrated debuts with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, The Cleveland Orchestra, Mahler Chamber Orchestra, and London’s Philharmonia Orchestra, among others.
Exclusive Worldwide Management: Kristin Schuster, Classic Concerts Management GmbH