Lahav Shani, conductor Lahav Shani, MusicDirector of the Israel Philharmonic, has been Chief Conductor of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra since 2018, the youngest Chief Conductor in the orchestra’s history. He was previously Principal Guest Conductor of the Vienna SymphonyOrchestra. In February 2023 the Munich Philharmonic appointed himas their newChief Conductor, starting fromSeptember 2026. His close relationshipwith the Israel Philharmonic started in 2007, when he performed Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto under the baton of ZubinMehta, and continued in 2010, whenMaestroMehta invited him to join the Israel Philharmonic on its Far East tour as pianist, assistant conductor and double bass player. In 2013, after winning theGustavMahler International Conducting Competition in Bamberg, the orchestra invited him to step in to conduct their season-opening concerts. His performances as guest conductor include concertswith theVienna Philharmonic, Berlin Philharmonic, Gewandhaus Orchestra, Munich Philharmonic, Bavarian Radio Symphony, London Symphony, La Scala Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, Chicago Symphony, Royal ConcertgebouwOrchestra, PhiladelphiaOrchestra, Budapest Festival Orchestra, Orchestre de Paris and PhilharmoniaOrchestra. InMarch 2022 he conductedMunich’s Benefit concert in aid of UkrainewithAnne-SophieMutter and the threeorchestras of the city, Bavarian StateOrchestra, Bavarian Radio Symphony, andMunich Philharmonic. In the 2022-23 season, he returned to theMunich Philharmonic for a concert series inMunich and Switzerland and also began his 3-year residency at the Konzerthaus Dortmund. Born in Tel Aviv in 1989, Lahav Shani began his piano studies aged six with Hannah Shalgi, before continuing with Prof. Arie Vardi at the Buchmann-Mehta School of Music. He went on to study conducting under Prof. Christian Ehwald and pianowith Prof. Fabio Bidini at theAcademy ofMusic Hanns Eisler, Berlin, andwasmentored byDaniel Barenboimduring his time there. As a pianist, he has performed as a soloist withDaniel Barenboim, ZubinMehta andGianandreaNoseda. He has play-directedpiano concerti withmany orchestras, including theVienna Philharmonic, Philharmonia Orchestra, La Scala Philharmonic, Staatskapelle Berlin and Royal ConcertgebouwOrchestra. He also has considerable experience performing chambermusic and in recital. A regular performer at the Verbier Festival, he has also appeared at the Aix-en-Provence Easter and JerusalemChamber Music Festivals, and in duo recitals withMartha Argerich. Leonidas Kavakos, violinist Leonidas Kavakos is recognized across theworld as a violinist and conductor of rare quality. He works regularly with the world’s greatest orchestras and conductors and plays as recitalist in the world’s premier recital halls and festivals. Kavakos has developed close relationships with major orchestras such as the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Berliner Philharmoniker, Royal ConcertgebouwOrchestra, London SymphonyOrchestra, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig and the Isreal Philharmonic. Kavakos alsoworks closelywith theDresdenStaatskapelle, Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks and Munich Philharmonic, as well as the major US Orchestras. In recent years, Kavakos has succeeded in building a strong profile as a conductor and has conducted theNewYork Philharmonic, Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Vienna Symphony, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Orchestra dell'AccademiaNazionale di Santa Cecilia, Filarmonica della Scala, and the Danish National Symphony Orchestra. Leonidas Kavakos is an exclusive recording artist with Sony Classics. Releases have included the Beethoven Violin Concertowhich he conducted and playedwith the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, and the re-release of his 2007 recording of the complete Beethoven Sonatas with Enrico Pace, for which he was named Echo Klassik Instrumentalist of the year. In 2022 Kavakos released ‘Beethoven for Three': Symphony No. 6 “Pastorale” and Op.1, No. 3 arranged for trio, with Emanuel Ax and Yo-YoMa. Born and brought up in a musical family in Athens, Kavakos curates an annual violin and chamber-musicmasterclass inAthens, which attracts violinists and ensembles fromall over the world. He plays the ‘Willemotte’ Stradivarius violin of 1734.
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