The Freiburg Theatre will have a new General Music Director. Leslie Suganandarajah was selected from among 129 applicants, the city of Freiburg announced on Tuesday. The conductor, originally from Sri Lanka, will succeed André de Ridder on September 1, 2027, who will then become Chief Conductor of the English National Opera in London.

Leslie Suganandarajah

Suganandarajah, who has been working as music director at the Salzburg State Theatre since 2019, convinced the selection committee "as an artistic personality with a precise technique and accurate working method with the Philharmonic Orchestra, with the ensemble and the choir," explained Freiburg's cultural mayor Roland Meder.

With the appointment of the conductor, born in 1983, the Freiburg Theatre gains a strong artistic partner who, together with the Freiburg Philharmonic Orchestra, will explore new musical horizons, said Artistic Director Felix Rothenhäusler. "He combines a multifaceted repertoire with a nuanced understanding of different performance practices and a great openness to diverse artistic approaches."

Suganandarajah came to Germany with his family when he was two years old and grew up in Hanover. He began his music studies there in 2002 before moving to Lübeck two years later. His first position was as Kapellmeister at the Koblenz Theatre for the 2012/13 season; in 2017 he moved to the Linz State Theatre in the same capacity, and in 2019 he became Music Director in Salzburg.

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