YURIY YANKO is General Director of the Kharkiv Philharmonic Society, Music Director and Chief Conductor of the Kharkiv Philharmonic Orchestra, Honoured Artist of Ukraine. He was awarded first prize at the Vakhtang Jordania International Conductors Competition. His art has been appreciated as masterful performance, with thorough knowledge of musical styles and different national schools. His clear gesture, evocative emotionality, artistry and demanding attitude to the orchestra make him one of the best Ukrainian conductors.
Born in Kharkiv, he graduated from the music school in his hometown (1980). He continued his studies at the Kharkiv University of Arts (1985) and the Kyiv National Conservatory (1991), studying operatic and symphonic conducting under Turchak, Dushchenko and Jordania.
He was conductor of the Academic Philharmonic Orchestra in Zaporizhzhya (1991-1994), Music Director and Conductor of the Kharkiv Special Music School Chamber Orchestra (1999-2004). Since 1994 he has been conductor of the Kharkiv Opera House, where he has staged several remarkable performances.
Since 2001 Yuriy Yanko has worked as Music Director and Principal Conductor of the Academic Symphony Orchestra of Kharkiv Philharmonic, and in 2004 he was appointed General Director of the Kharkiv Philharmonic Society, which includes several different musical ensembles, including the Symphony Orchestra.
For his successful work he was twice awarded the Kharkiv Regional Government Diploma, in 2002 and 2006, and Kharkiv Mayor’s supreme award “For Zeal” (2004). He has been annual laureate of regional rate ”Kharkiver of year” for 6 years (2001 – 2006) and the winner of the award “Public Recognition” (2004).
A number of well-known contemporary musicians, such as Dmitry Bashkirov, Bogodar Kotorovich, Vladimir Krainev, Daniel Kramer, Yuri Loevsky, Nikolai Petrov, Sergei Stadler, Naum Shtarkman, Alexander Knyazev and many others appreciated highly Yanko’s conducting skills. He has conducted the National Symphony Orchestras of Ukraine, Moldova, numerous Russian and Ukrainian orchestras, and his performance art is known to audiences in a number of countries around the world: The Netherlands, Egypt, Spain, Italy, Germany, South Korea, Poland, Russia, USA, France, Switzerland, etc.