Outgoing Aachen General Music Director Christopher Ward will become the new Music Director of the Longoborough Festival Opera (LFO). The 46-year-old Briton will take up the post in his home country starting with the 2027 season, the festival announced on Thursday. He succeeds Anthony Negus, who has been Music Director of the opera house in southwest England since 2000. Negus will become Conductor Honoree in 2027.

Christopher Ward

Ward has been General Music Director at the Aachen Theatre since 2017 and his contract expires in the summer of 2026. He brings musical authority, leadership experience, and artistic curiosity, said LFO Managing Director Emily Gottlieb. "He impressed us with his sensitive and collaborative personal style, his deep commitment to musical excellence, his passion for nurturing new talent, and he shares our bold and ambitious vision for Longborough."

The Longborough Festival Opera was founded in 1991 on the initiative of Martin and Lizzie Graham, who initially held concerts in their own home. In 1997, they built a 500-seat opera house modeled after the Bayreuth Festspielhaus.

The designated music director praised the institution as a special place with deep and loyal relationships with its audience and a strong commitment to fostering future generations through education and community engagement. "Even in my first encounters with the team, I was impressed by their shared enthusiasm and cooperative spirit."

The 2026 festival begins on May 30 with a new production of Handel's "Orlando" and lasts until August 8 with Verdi's "Macbeth", Humperdinck's "Hansel and Gretel" and Wagner's "Tristan and Isolde".

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