David Robertson
About this Artist
David Robertson—conductor, artist, thinker, and American musical visionary—occupies some of the most prominent platforms, internationally, in opera, orchestral music, and new music.
In the 2021/22 season, Robertson makes his Rome Opera debut conducting Janáček’s Kát’a Kabanová, and, building upon his prolific association with The Metropolitan Opera, conducts encore performances of the lauded 2019 production of the Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, for which his musical leadership was honored at the 63rd Grammy Awards (Best Opera Recording). His breathtaking range of Met Opera endeavors include the celebrated 2018 production of Così fan tutte, set in 1950s Coney Island, and since his 1996 Met debut, The Makropulos Case, the Met premiere of John Adams’ The Death of Klinghoffer, revival of Janáček’s Jenůfa, premiere production of Nico Muhly’s Two Boys, and many favorites. Robertson conducts projects at the world’s most prestigious opera houses.
In 2018, Robertson completed his transformative 13-year tenure as Music Director of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, creating fruitful relationships with a spectrum of artists and solidifying its status as among the nation’s most innovative. He garnered a 2014 Grammy Award (Best Orchestral Performance) for John Adams’ City Noir (Nonesuch), with two final SLSO collaborations released in 2019: Wynton Marsalis’ Swing Symphony with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra (Blue Engine) and Mozart Piano Concertos with Orli Shaham (Canary Classics). As Robertson’s 2019 valedictory season as Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra culminated, he joined the Tianjin Juilliard Advisory Council, guiding Juilliard’s young Chinese campus, complementing his role as Director of Conducting Studies, Distinguished Visiting Faculty of The Juilliard School, New York.
He appears regularly in Europe with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Czech Philharmonic, Wiener Symphoniker, Staatskapelle Dresden, and in London, Paris, Munich, and elsewhere. In addition to his long-standing relationship with the New York Philharmonic, frequent North American musical destinations include Boston, Philadelphia, Houston, and Seattle. He conducts the New Japan Philharmonic, China NCPA Orchestra, and, in 2022, debuts with the Sao Paulo State Symphony Orchestra. Robertson has served in numerous artistic leadership positions: with the Orchestre National de Lyon; the Ensemble InterContemporain as a protégé of Pierre Boulez; Principal Guest Conductor, BBC Symphony Orchestra. Robertson has been a Carnegie Hall Perspectives Artist, where he has conducted The Met Orchestra, Lucerne Festival Orchestra, SLSO, The Juilliard Orchestra, and Carnegie Hall’s National Youth Orchestra of the USA.
In 2010, David Robertson became a Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres of France, and he is the recipient of numerous artistic awards. Beyond Juilliard, he is devoted to supporting young musicians and works with teaching festivals from Aspen to Lucerne. In 2020, he helped form the international digital electric guitar ensemble Another Night on Earth.
Born in Santa Monica, California, Robertson was educated at London’s Royal Academy of Music. He is married to pianist Orli Shaham and lives in New York.