Photo by Karolina Kuras
Latest Reviews:
Musically all the performances under conductor Gerry Cornelius were excellent - Andrew Clements, The Guardian, 9 Jun 2024
Gerry Cornelius conducts with clarity and a great sense of refinement - Sam Smith, Opera + Classical Music Reviews, 7 Oct 2024
From the very opening, the sound of the instrumental ensemble under Gerry Cornelius was terrifically vivid, as if the reduction to ten instruments had clarified things - Robert Hugill, Planet Hugill, 5 Oct 2024
Born of Irish & Sri Lankan parentage and raised in South London, I trained to be a musician at Durham University, Royal Academy of Music London and finished in the class of Ilya Musin at the St Petersburg Conservatory.
Throughout my career I have been unashamedly active in all the main musical and theatrical genres. This has brought about longstanding associations with a very broad spectrum of ensembles, arts companies and education institutions in the U.K. and abroad. My first role in musical leadership was as Music Director at the Thursford Christmas Spectacular. My titled posts since then have included Principal Guest Conductor at English National Ballet and, most recently, Music Director of English Touring Opera (since 2021). I am also a regular performer and collaborator with London Sinfonietta and Chroma contemporary music ensembles. .
In the UK I have appeared as a guest with ETO, ENO, ROH Linbury, The Opera Group, Tête à tête, WNO, the Hallé, and LPO whilst abroad with the Bolshoi in Moscow, Luxembourg Philharmonic, Opera Orchestra of the Gran Teatre del Liceu Barcelona, Festival d’Automne Paris, MusikFabrik Cologne, Hong Kong Ballet & Sinfonietta.
My close association with composers and creators of theatre art forms has recently involved me in world premiere productions of lyric theatre by Judith Weir, Tansy Davies, George Benjamin, Catherine Kontz, and Olga Neuwirth whilst also conducting Pina Bausch’s Sacre du printemps and Akram Khan’s Giselle & Creature for the dance stage.
I was for eight years the head of music and associate conductor of the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain. Elsewhere in education I have been a visiting musician at Goldsmiths and Cambridge universities and Trinity Laban, RAM and RCM conservatories in London.