Elim Chan

Conductor

One of the most sought-after artists of her generation, conductor Elim Chan embodies the spirit of contemporary orchestral leadership with her crystalline precision and expressive zeal.

In May 2026 she became Music Director Designate of the San Francisco Symphony and assumes the Music Director post from the 2027/28 season. She was also recently appointed Artistic Partner with the Wiener Symphoniker for the 2026/27 and 2027/28 seasons, following her residency as Portrait Artist at the Musikverein in 2022/23. She served as Principal Conductor of the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra from 2019 to 2024 and Principal Guest Conductor of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra from 2018 to 2023.

Elim Chan makes her Berliner Philharmoniker debut in 2026/27, alongside first appearances with the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Dallas Symphony Orchestra, and NHK Symphony Orchestra. She also makes her staged opera debut conducting John Adams’ Doctor Atomic at the Zurich Opera House in a new production.

Recent debuts and upcoming re-invitations include leading orchestras such as the Staatskapelle Berlin, Sächsische Stattskapelle Dresden, Munich Philharmonic, Bamberg Symphony, London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Orchestre de Paris, Boston Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra.

Female conductor in white shirt, focused, holding a baton with her arm extended — Elim Chan conducts the LA Phil at the Hollywood Bowl in "Scheherazade" on July 9, 2024.

Elim Chan has appeared at both the Lucerne and Salzburg festivals and conducted the First Night of the Proms with the BBC Symphony Orchestra in 2024, returning in 2025 to conduct the Last Night of the Proms. With the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, she recorded All These Lighted Things for Alpha Classics, pairing the titular Elizabeth Ogonek work with music by Prokofiev and Ravel.

Born in Hong Kong, Elim Chan studied at Smith College in Massachusetts and at the University of Michigan. In 2014, she became the first female winner of the Donatella Flick Conducting Competition and went on to spend her 2015/16 season as Assistant Conductor at the London Symphony Orchestra, where she worked closely with Valery Gergiev. In the following season, Elim Chan joined the Dudamel Fellowship program of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. She also owes much to the support and encouragement of Bernard Haitink, whose master classes she attended in Lucerne in 2015.