Conductor ROSSEN GERGOV (1981) has gained wide international recognition for his performances on the concert stage and in opera. His repertoire ranges from Mozart to contemporary works. He held the position of chief conductor of the Bulgarian National Radio Symphony Orchestra (2016-2017) and continues his strong connection with Bulgarian orchestras and opera houses as a guest conductor of the Sofia Philharmonic and Sofia Opera and Ballet, the Sinfonietta Vratsa , the State Opera in Varna, the Pleven Philharmonic Orchestra, and the State Opera in Ruse.
Мо. Gergov’s recent highlights include a semi-staged performance of Bizet’s Carmen with the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, a tour of the Teatro Comunale in Bolzano where he conducted two Matteo Franceschini operas (the world premieres of Dorian Gray and Alice), and a new production of Der fliegende Holländer at the Sofia Opera. He performs with his three sons, who are already recognised soloists — the violinist Kai Gergov, the cellist Ray Gergov and the pianist Leo Gergov — with the Pleven Philharmonic. This year, they are participating in the Sofia Music Weeks International Festival, and they also perform with the orchestra of the State Opera in Varna.
Rossen Gergov has worked extensively in Japan with several orchestras, including the Tokyo New City Orchestra, the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, the Osaka Symphony Orchestra, the Kyoto Symphony Orchestra, the Hiroshima Symphony Orchestra, the Sapporo Symphony Orchestra, the Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra and the Nagoya Philharmonic Orchestra. He has also conducted the China National Symphony Orchestra and the Sichuan Symphony Orchestra.
He has performed throughout Europe with the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, the German Symphony Orchestra Berlin, the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra, Opéra Orchestre National Montpellier Occitanie, Orquesta Sinfónica del Principado de Asturias – OSPA, the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, the SWR Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, the Ensemble Modern, Klangforum Wien, the Odense Symphony Orchestra, the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra (Katowice), the Paderewski Philharmonic Orchestra and the Noord Nederlands Orkest.
Alongside traditional repertoire, his interpretations of contemporary works have played a significant role in Gergov’s opera career. He made his debut at the Teatro Comunale in Bolzano in a production of George Benjamin’s Written on Skin, and prior to that, he appeared at the National Theatre in Mannheim in a new production of Hans Werner Henze’s The Bassarids, after which he conducted performances of Cherubini’s Médée. His appearances at the Bregenz Festival include Puccini’s Tosca, Benedict Mason’s Playing Away and the Austrian premiere of Mieczysław Weinberg’s The Portrait. He conducted Cassandre by Michael Jarrell at the Teatro Rossini in Lugo; The Portrait by Mieczysław Weinberg at Opera North in Leeds; Die Fledermaus by Johann Strauss Jr. and Rigoletto by Verdi at the Vienna Volksoper; La Traviata by Verdi and The Marriage of Figaro by Mozart at the Meiningen Theater with Klangforum; and Der Kaiser von Atlantis by Viktor Ullmann with students from the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London, Offenbach’s Orpheus in the Underworld, etc.
Мо. Rossen Gergov graduated from the Lyubomir Pipkov National School of Music in Sofia, where he studied the piano with Milka Miteva, the clarinet with Borislav Yotsov and conducting with Mihail Angelov. He went on to specialise in conducting at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna under Leopold Hager and Seiji Ozawa, the latter of whom invited him to the Tanglewood Music Festival. Following graduation, he conducted the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra. Until 2009, he was assistant conductor of the Tonkünstler Orchestra of Lower Austria.
He won the Evgeny Svetlanov International Conducting Competition in 2007. The following year, he was nominated for a Grammy Award for his recording of David Chesky’s works with the NorrlandsOperan Symphony Orchestra. He has made recordings for the BBC, Bavarian Radio, Austrian Radio and Television, and BNR.
As well as performing concerts in Bulgaria, Gergov has also served on the jury of the Cantus Firmus National Competition in Sofia.
