CHRISTIAN ØLAND

Chief Conductor: Danish Philharmonic Orchestra (from 2025/26)

Christian Øland is one of the Nordic region’s most promising young conducting talents. From the 2025/26 season, Christian Øland will hold the post of Chief Conductor of the Danish Philharmonic Orchestra.
The season also includes notable debuts with The Danish National Symphony Orchestra, conducting the orchestras traditional New Year’s concerts, and debut with The Oslo Philharmonic - along reinvitations from orchestras such as Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and Copenhagen Philharmonic.

The 2024/25 season includes notable engagements with the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra, Copenhagen Philharmonic, Theater Magdeburg/Magdeburg Philharmoniker, Danish Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Slovak State Philharmonic. Additionally, Øland will debut with The Danish National Opera, conducting Poul Schierbeck's much anticipated opera ‘Fête Galante’.

In the 2023/24 season, Øland conducted the Copenhagen Philharmonic in the world premiere of the symphonic contemporary dance work ‘Leaning Tree’
by Danish composer Signe Lykke, which has since been nominated for the Reumert Prize for ‘Best Dance Performance’.
This season also featured debuts with the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra, and Iceland Symphony Orchestra.

Christian Øland has previously worked with prestigious orchestras such as The Danish National Symphony Orchestra, The Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, The Royal Danish Orchestra, Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Iceland Symphony Orchestra, The Royal Swedish Orchestra(The Royal Swedish Opera and Ballet), Magdeburg Philharmoniker, Slovak State Philharmonic Košice, Copenhagen Philharmonic, South Denmark Philharmonic, The Wermland Opera, and The Nordic Chamber Orchestra. In Denmark, he is a regular guest conductor with all regional orchestras.

Equally adept in concert halls and opera houses, Øland has conducted productions such as Mats Ek’s acclaimed 'Juliet and Romeo' with the Royal Swedish Ballet, Tchaikovsky's ‘The Nutcracker’ at The Royal Danish Ballet, and ‘The World of John Neumeier’ with The Hamburg Ballet. He has also conducted a fully staged production of Britten’s opera ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ with Helsinki Sinfonietta and served as Assistant Conductor at the Savonlinna Opera Festival in Finland in 2018 and 2019.

Born in Denmark in 1994, Christian Øland studied at the prestigious Sibelius Academy in Helsinki. Admitted at the age of 18, he was appointed Assistant Conductor of the Finnish Radio SymphonyOrchestra by Chief Conductor Hannu Lintu after only one year of studies. He worked closely with visiting conductors such as Esa-Pekka Salonen and Herbert Blomstedt, and conducted the orchestra's educational and youth concerts as well as contemporary music productions.

Before his conducting studies, Øland studied bassoon and piano in Denmark and played as a bassoonist with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra. His teachers and mentors at The Sibelius Academy included renowned conductors Hannu Lintu, Atso Almila, Leif Segerstam, Jorma Panula, Herbert Blomstedt, and Esa-Pekka Salonen.

In 2016, Øland received the 'Carl Nielsen Talent Prize' and the 'Arne Hammelboe Travel Scholarship'.

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