B i o g r a p h y
Michael Papadopoulos is a British-Cypriot conductor and is an alumnus of the Royal Opera's prestigious Jette Parker Programme where he worked on a number of productions with conductors such as Antonio Pappano, Mark Wigglesworth, Mark Elder, and Daniele Rustioni. He is a former BBC Music Magazine Rising Star and, from September 2024, will join the conducting staff of the Volksoper Wien.
"Under Michael Papadopoulos a virtuoso contingent from the ROH Orchestra injected a sense of apocalyptic terror into one of Weill's finest scores"
Richard Morrison, The Times
Michael made his mainstage conducting debut at the Royal Opera House in April 2021 in a double bill of Weill/Brecht's The Seven Deadly Sins and Mahagonny Songspiel with the ROH orchestra. As well as further performances with the ROH orchestra, he also conducted the Britten Sinfonia in performances of Mavra and Pierrot Lunaire in the Linbury Theatre.
During the 2023/24 Season, Michael makes his debuts with English Touring Opera, conducting performances of Manon Lescaut and The Rake's Progress, and Opera Holland Park, conducting performances of Acis and Galatea. He also conducts the Britten Sinfonia again in performances of Huw Watkins' new Horn Concerto.
As a pianist, Michael has covered a wide range of repertoire in his work for companies such as the Royal Opera, Opera North, Scottish Opera (where he was an Emerging Artist), and Opera Holland Park. As a harpsichordist, he has led performances of Dido and Aeneas and Acis and Galatea from the keyboard at the Ustinov Studio in Bath and Waterperry Opera Festival.
"The Britten Sinfonia, under Papadopoulos's clear direction, were impeccable, nuanced, instruments grouping and regrouping to produce a fluid sound world that was as alluring as it was disturbing, offering an ordered, eloquent backdrop to Pierrot's emotional journey"
Jonathan Cross, Opera Magazine
Michael read music at Trinity College Oxford before continuing to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and the National Opera Studio. He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Organists and was previously Assistant Director of Music at St Paul's Church Knightsbridge, where he regularly conducted the choir for both services and concerts.
