Karel Mark Chichon (born 30 April 1971) is a British orchestra conductor.

Biography

Born in London, Chichon studied at the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is one of the oldest music schools in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the firs ...

in London, and at the Hochschule für Musik in Vienna under Leopold Hager. Karel Mark Chichon is the Artistic Director of Orquesta Filarmónica de Gran Canaria since May 2017, recently renewed until season 2026–2027 Karel Mark Chichon is also Artistic Director of Gibraltar Philharmonic Society,

Career

Chichon was chief conductor of the Graz Symphony Orchestra from 2006 to 2009. He served as chief conductor and artistic director of the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra from 2009 to 2012. Chichon became chief conductor of the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern (DRP) in September 2011. In March 2013, his initial contract was extended through the 2016–2017 season. In March 2015, the orchestra and Chichon mutually announced the scheduled conclusion of his DRP tenure at the end of the 2016–2017 season. In the US, Chichon made his

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera is an American opera company based in New York City, currently resident at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center), Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Referred ...

conducting debut in February 2016 with performances of ''

Madama Butterfly ''Madama Butterfly'' (; ''Madame Butterfly'') is an opera in three acts (originally two) by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It is based on the short story " Madame Butterfly" (1898) by John Lu ...

'', which included one cinema relay. In May 2017, he was appointed chief conductor and artistic director of the Orquesta Filarmónica de Gran Canaria, effective with the 2017–2018 season., a position in which he has been renewed three times until the 2026–2027 season.

Discography

His commercial recordings include two albums for

Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family of ...

, ''Meditation'' and ''Habanera'', both of which feature his wife

Elīna Garanča Elīna Garanča (born 16 September 1976) is a Latvian mezzo-soprano. She began to study singing in her hometown of Riga in 1996 and continued her studies in Vienna and in the United States. By 1999 she had won first place in the Mirjam Helin Sing ...

. In 2014 he recorded Dvořák's Symphony No. 1 with the DRP orchestra for the Hänssler Classic label, the first of a projected set of all nine of Dvořák's symphonies. Chichon was appointed

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(OBE) in the 2012

Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning monarch's official birthday in each realm by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are ...

for services to music and culture in Gibraltar. In March 2016, he was named a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music.

Personal life

Chichon and

have two daughters, Catherine Louise Chichon and Cristina Sophie Chichon, who in turn are granddaughters to Harry Chichon and Leonor Chichon.

References

External links

Official website of Karel Mark Chichon

Askonas Holt agency page on Karel Mark Chichon

Deutschen Radio Philharmonie Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern German-language page on Chichon
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chichon, Karel Mark 1971 births Living people Gibraltarian conductors (music) Alumni of the Royal Academy of Music Officers of the Order of the British Empire 21st-century British conductors (music)