Kevin John Edusei: Conductor-in-Residence, 2025–26

Conductor-in-Residence, 2025–26 at Cadogan Hall

German conductor Kevin John Edusei is sought after the world over. In the 2025–26 Season, he is Conductor-in-Residence with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. He is in high demand in North America, where he debuts with the Atlanta and St Louis Symphony orchestras and returns to the Kansas City, Colorado, Indianapolis and Seattle Symphony orchestras. Other engagements this season include returns to the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Deutsche Radio Philharmonie and Royal Scottish National Orchestra, as well as his debuts with the Prague Symphony Orchestra and Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León.

Highlights of his guest conducting include his critically acclaimed debut with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, and concerts with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Munich Philharmonic Orchestra and Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra.

In 2022, Kevin made his debut at the Royal Ballet and Opera conducting Puccini’s La bohème, which was streamed across cinemas worldwide, and in 2023–24, he returned for a production of Madama Butterfly. Previously, he has enjoyed great success with productions at the Semperoper Dresden, English National Opera, Hamburg State Opera, Volksoper Wien and Komische Oper Berlin. Until 2019, he was the Principal Conductor of the Bern Opera House.

What excites you most about your new role with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra?

It has to be the opportunity to collaborate with this outstanding group of musicians over the course of a complete season and to contribute to the artistic vision of the orchestra. When I worked with the Orchestra for the first time in the 2021–22 season, I found it astonishing how sensitively they reacted and entered into a lively musical dialogue. I'm now very much looking forward to deepening this experience.

The RPO has an incredible ability to connect with audiences across diverse venues and communities. I’m particularly eager to explore new repertoire, create inspiring musical experiences with fantastic soloists, and engage with their audience.

The season features Four Last Songs by Richard Strauss, one of the most moving works in the repertoire. How do you approach conducting such an emotional piece?

The music of Richard Strauss has played a major role in my repertoire over the years, both in opera and in the concert hall. He is masterful at combining text and music: every sentence, every word, every syllable carries a whole wealth of meaning. I’m delighted that we have the exceptional soprano Masabane Cecilia Rangwanasha joining us for this concert. She will enchant you with her voice.

How do you balance tradition with innovation in your programming and interpretation?

My love of classical music has always gone hand in hand with my desire to make connections between compositions from different genres and eras. It all started when I was a schoolboy and made mixtapes on my cassette recorder, with the classics next to obscure or unknown repertoire. This curiosity has stayed with me, and I hope I can infect others with it.

Don’t miss Kevin’s final performance on Wednesday 27 May 2026.