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The Cleveland Orchestra, under the leadership of Franz Welser-Möst since 2002, is one of the most sought-after performing ensembles in the world. Year after year, the ensemble exemplifies extraordinary artistic excellence, creative programming, and community engagement. In recent years, The New York Times has called Cleveland “the best in America” for its virtuosity, elegance of sound, variety of color, and chamber-like musical cohesion.
Founded by Adella Prentiss Hughes, the Orchestra performed its inaugural concert in December 1918. By the middle of the century, decades of growth and sustained support had turned the ensemble into one of the most admired around the world.
The past decade has seen an increasing number of young people attending concerts, bringing fresh attention to The Cleveland Orchestra’s legendary sound and committed programming. More recently, the Orchestra launched several bold digital projects, including the streaming platform Adella.live and its own recording label. Together, they have captured the Orchestra’s unique artistry and the musical achievements of the Welser-Möst and Cleveland Orchestra partnership.
The 2025–26 season marks Franz Welser-Möst’s 24th year as Music Director, a period in which The Cleveland Orchestra has earned unprecedented acclaim around the world, including a series of residencies at the Musikverein in Vienna, the first of its kind by an American orchestra, and a number of celebrated opera presentations.
Since 1918, seven music directors — Nikolai Sokoloff, Artur Rodziński, Erich Leinsdorf, George Szell, Lorin Maazel, Christoph von Dohnányi, and Franz Welser-Möst — have guided and shaped the ensemble’s growth and sound. Through concerts at home and on tour, broadcasts, and a catalog of acclaimed recordings, The Cleveland Orchestra is heard today by a growing group of fans around the world.
conductor
One of the most sought-after artists of her generation, conductor Elim Chan embodies the spirit of contemporary orchestral leadership with her crystalline precision and expressive zeal. She served as principal conductor of the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra between 2019 and 2024 and principal guest conductor of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra between 2018 and 2023.
Having conducted the First Night of the Proms with the BBC Symphony Orchestra in 2024, Chan returned to the series in 2025 to conduct the renowned Last Night of the Proms. The summer of 2025 also saw her reunite with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and The Cleveland Orchestra, as well as touring with the Concertgebouworkest Young and making her debut at the Musikfest Berlin with the Staatskapelle Berlin.
Highlights in the 2025–26 season include return engagements with The Cleveland Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, London Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, ORF Radio-Symphonie-Orchester, Staatskapelle Dresden, Luxembourg Philharmonic, and Orchestre de Paris, among others. She also makes her subscription debut with The Philadelphia Orchestra and debuts with the Münchner Philharmoniker, Orchester der Oper Zürich, Bamberger Symphoniker, and Orchestre symphonique de Montréal.
Chan’s previous debuts include performances with the San Francisco Symphony, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, Hong Kong Philharmonic, Wiener Symphoniker, and Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin.
Born in Hong Kong, Chan studied at Smith College in Massachusetts and at the University of Michigan. In 2014, she became the first female winner of the Donatella Flick Conducting Competition and went on to spend her 2015–16 season as assistant conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, where she worked closely with Valery Gergiev. In 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 masterclasses she attended in Lucerne in 2015.
composer
Max Bruch was a German Romantic composer, violinist, teacher, and conductor who wrote more than 200 works, including three violin concertos, the first of which has become a staple of the violin repertoire.
Composer
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