Semyon Bychkov

Semyon Bychkov’s tenure as chief conductor and music director of the Czech Philharmonic — Gramophone’s 2024 Orchestra of the Year — was initiated with concerts in Prague, London, New York, and Washington, DC, celebrating the 100th anniversary of Czech independence. This past season, alongside subscription concerts in Prague, Bychkov toured with the orchestra to Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Austria, Italy, Germany, Luxembourg, Sweden, and Finland. In spring 2026, Pentatone released the complete cycle of Mahler symphonies recorded with the Philharmonic over the past 8 seasons.

Bychkov brings a unique combination of innate musicality and rigorous pedagogy to a repertoire that spans four centuries. He is a frequent guest with the leading international orchestras and opera companies and has recorded extensively with the Berlin Philharmonic, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Concertgebouworkest, Philharmonia Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestre de Paris, and WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne, among others.

This season, Bychkov conducted a new production of Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin at the Paris Opera and returned for concerts with the Concertgebouworkest, Leipzig Gewandhausorchester, Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Berlin Philharmonic, and New York Philharmonic

In common with the Czech Philharmonic, Bychkov has one foot firmly in the culture of the East and the other in the West. Born in St. Petersburg, he emigrated to the United States in 1975 and is now based in Europe. In 1989, Bychkov returned to the former Soviet Union as principal guest conductor of the St. Petersburg Philharmonic, and the same year was named music director of the Orchestre de Paris. In 1997, he was appointed chief conductor of the WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne, and in 1998, chief conductor of the Dresden Semperoper.

Bychkov holds honorary titles with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the Royal Academy of Music. He was named Conductor of the Year by the International Opera Awards in 2015 and by Musical America in 2022.