A frequent guest with leading orchestras worldwide, Ilan Volkov works regularly with a wide range of repertoire and ensembles, and appears in many of the foremost Festivals of the world, including Salzburg, Edinburgh, BBC Proms, Lucerne and Berlin. Highlights of his schedule include performances with the BBC Symphony and Stuttgart Opera, as well as CBSO, SWR Stuttgart, Bayerische Rundkunft, Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, Ensemble Intercontemporain, WDR Köln and Oslo Philharmonic orchestras.
Equally interested in opera, Ilan has conducted Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin for San Francisco Opera, Britten's A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Glyndebourne Festival, Peter Grimes for Washington National Opera and Glyndebourne Festival, Kurt Weill's The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny for Théâtre du Capitole de Toulouse, Bartók’s Duke Bluebeard’s Castle with the Israeli Opera, Gerald Barry’s Importance of being Ernest at the Lincoln Centre with New York Philharmonic. Highlights in 2018 include Bach’s Actus Tragicus for Stuttgart Opera.
Considered to be the electricity powering 'new music', Ilan Volkov launched ‘Tectonics’ in Reykjavik, Glasgow Tectonics followed shortly afterwards. Tectonics’ vibrant and diverse programming, reflecting Ilan’s omnivorous interests in experimental, free improvisation, electronica, folk, world music and new hip-hop, has now been presented 21 times with regular festivals in Adelaide, Oslo, New York, Tel Aviv, Krakow, Athens, Glasgow and Reykjavik.
His diverse discography includes projects with Hyperion including two albums of Stravinsky’s ballet scores, comprising Jeu de cartes, Agon, Orpheus, Le baiser de la fée and Scènes de ballet; Britten's complete works for piano and orchestra, a Gramophone Award-winning recording with Steven Osborne, and a critically acclaimed survey of Liszt’s three Funeral Odes with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra released in the composer’s anniversary year. Volkov’s NMC disc of works by Jonathan Harvey, Body Mandala, received a Gramophone Award in 2008 while his recording for the Aeon label of Harvey’s Speakings won the prestigious Monaco Prize and the Prix Caecilia de l'Union de la Presse Musicale Belge.
Born in Israel in September 1976, Ilan Volkov began his conducting career at the age of nineteen as Principal Conductor of the London Philharmonic Youth Orchestra and Assistant Conductor of the Boston Symphony. In 2003 he was appointed Principal Conductor of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and subsequently became its Principal Guest Conductor in 2009. Between 2011 and 2014, he was appointed Music Director and Principal Conductor of the Iceland Symphony Orchestra.