Wales — BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Akiko Suwanai Violin, Jaime Martín Conductor

BBC National Orchestra of Wales

For over 90 years, the BBC National Orchestra and Chorus of Wales (BBC NOW), Wales' only professional symphony orchestra, has played a vital role in the nation's cultural landscape, holding a prominent position as both national and broadcast orchestra.

Supported by the Arts Council of Wales, BBC NOW maintains a busy schedule of live concerts and broadcasts, collaborating with acclaimed conductors and soloists from around the world, including its Principal Conductor, award-winning Ryan Bancroft. BBC NOW serves as an ambassador for Welsh culture: the orchestra and chorus regularly perform music created in Wales, including in the Welsh language, and support Welsh composers and artists.

Committed to working with community groups and charitable organisations, BBC NOW brings music beyond concert halls into settings such as schools and hospitals, enabling others to experience music and be inspired by it.

It organises workshops, concerts, and outreach performances to inspire the next generation of performers, composers, and artistic leaders, welcoming thousands of young people and community members annually through its education and engagement projects.

BBC NOW performs annually at the BBC Proms and every two years at the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World competition. Its concerts are regularly heard across the BBC networks. On television, music performed by BBC NOW features on BBC and other global channels, including soundtracks and main themes for programmes such as Doctor Who, Planet Earth III, Prehistoric Planet, The Pact, and Children in Need.

At its home base, BBC Hoddinott Hall in Cardiff Bay, BBC NOW utilises a state-of-the-art recording studio equipped with camera systems for live streaming and television broadcasts, helping to reach wider audiences.

AKIKO SUWANAI. Violin

Japanese violinist Akiko Suwanai has established herself as one of the most sought-after artists of her generation. Since winning the International Tchaikovsky Competition in 1990, she has enjoyed a successful international career, performing chamber music worldwide and collaborating at the highest level with orchestras and conductors.

In the 2024–25 season, Suwanai returns to the National Symphony Orchestra Taiwan under Jun Märkl with Bruch’s concerto, which she will reprise with the Gürzenich-Orchester Köln under Sakari Oramo on a tour of Japan. Other engagements include performances with the NHK Symphony Orchestra under Fabio Luisi touring Asia and Europe, the Swedish Chamber Orchestra under Downey-Dear, and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra under Dmitry Matvienko, where she will perform Mozart’s Fifth Violin Concerto. Known for her broad repertoire, Suwanai will perform Hosokawa’s concerto Genesis with the Gürzenich-Orchester and return to the St Louis Symphony with Connesson’s concerto under Stéphane Denève. She will also perform Dvořák’s Violin Concerto with the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen under Paavo Järvi and the Singapore Symphony Orchestra under Kahchun Wong.

Acclaimed for her interpretations of major repertoire, Suwanai has recorded Brahms’ Violin Sonatas and Bach’s complete Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin with Universal Music in 2024 and 2022 respectively. She is renowned for her masterful performances of lesser-known works and her passion for contemporary music. Other recordings include works by Takemitsu with the NHK Symphony Orchestra under Järvi, the premiere of Peter Eötvös’s “Seven” at the Lucerne Festival under Pierre Boulez, followed by a performance at the BBC Proms under Susanna Mälkki the following year. Suwanai has also premiered significant new works in Asia, including violin concertos by James MacMillan, Esa-Pekka Salonen, and Krzysztof Penderecki.

In 2012, she founded the Nippon Festival in Tokyo, held biennially, bringing together orchestras, chamber ensembles, and premieres by Japanese and international composers.

Akiko Suwanai performs on the “Charles Reade” Guarneri del Gesù violin, generously loaned by Japanese-American collector and philanthropist Dr. Ryuji Ueno.

JAIME MARTÍN. Conductor

Jaime Martín is currently Chief Conductor of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (since 2022) and Artistic Director of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra (since 2019), with contracts extended to 2028 and 2027 respectively. Starting in the 2024/25 season, he will also become Principal Guest Conductor of the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. He previously served as Chief Conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland (2019–2024), Principal Guest Conductor of the Spanish National Orchestra (2022–2024), and Music Director of the Gävle Symphony Orchestra (2013–2022).

Recent highlights include debuts with the Budapest Festival Orchestra, Dresden Philharmonic, and the Dallas and Indianapolis Symphonies, as well as his appearance at the BBC Proms. He conducted the Academy of St Martin in the Fields for Sir Neville Marriner’s centenary and has returned to orchestras such as the Sydney Symphony, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Orquesta de Galicia, and Castilla y León Symphony Orchestra.

In the 2024/25 season, he will make his debut with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg and return to orchestras in Barcelona, Sydney, and the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain. His programming with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra ranges from the Brandenburg Concertos to works by Louise Farrenc, Florence Price, and a premiere by Laura Karpman. In Melbourne, he will present the complete Beethoven cycle, Mahler’s Second Symphony, Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloé, and recordings of Dvořák.

He has conducted orchestras including the BBC Symphony, London Philharmonia, National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, Stockholm Philharmonic, New Zealand Symphony, Frankfurt Radio Orchestra, and Radio France. Collaborations include soloists Anne Sofie von Otter, Joshua Bell, Tetzlaff, Mullova, Radulovic, Perianes, and Ferrández. He has also premiered works by composers such as Ellen Reid, Missy Mazzoli, Juan Pablo Contreras, and Andrew Norman.

His first recording with Melbourne—featuring works by Strauss and Debussy with Siobhan Stagg—was released in 2024. He has previously recorded Mozart wind concertos, Brahms and Melchers symphonies, and albums with Cadaqués, RTÉ, the London Philharmonic, and Barcelona Orchestra, covering repertoire from Albéniz to James Horner.

Before fully focusing on conducting in 2013, he was principal flute in orchestras including the Royal Philharmonic and Academy of St Martin in the Fields, recording with Marriner, Perahia, and Noseda. He is an honorary member of the Royal College of Music and recipient of Spain’s National Music Prize in 2022.