"Conductor
Benjamin Ellin and his deeply committed players provided an exploration of the
work (Mahler 5) that was powerfully impressive.”
William Marshall, Huddersfield Examiner,
January 2011.
"Other
heroes, the conductor Benjamin Ellin and Orchestra Chambre de Catalogne;
a true
conspiracy of talents...”
Michèle Fizaine,
Le Midi Libre, France, March 2010
"Ellin coaxed the orchestra and the chorus and showed
how exciting a masterpiece this work could be."
Ongaku no Tomo Magazine, Japan, November 2010
Award winning British conductor and
composer Benjamin Ellin is currently Music Director of Thursford Productions,
Principal Conductor of the Slaithwaite Philharmonic, President of Pembroke
Academy of Music, London and Music Director of Focus Opera.
Benjamin started his 2010/2011 season with
a sold out debut in Japan
performing Belshazzar’s Feast followed by opera performances in London before commencing
his second season at Thursford. This was interspersed with performances of his
Akhmatova song cycle ‘White Knight’ in St
Petersburg and a week of concerts with the Chamber
Orchestra of Montpellier. Immediate plans for the rest of the season include
the launch of the London Southbank Centre’s Soundbank Ensemble of which he is
Music Director and further concert and opera performances in London,
Calgary, Montpellier,
Amman as well as across the UK. Future
plans include return visits to orchestras in Japan,
Sicily, France,
Russia and USA.
Benjamin was awarded 1st Prize
and the Public Prize from the inaugural Evgeny Svetlanov International
Conducting Competition in Luxembourg
in 2007 and subsequently made his debut with the Luxembourg Philharmonic
Orchestra conducting Rachmaninov’s 2nd Symphony. This led to further engagements with the St
Petersburg Philharmonic, Teatro Massimo Palermo, Orchestra del Teatro Regio Turin, Russian State
Symphony Orchestra, New Russian Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre National de Lyon,
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, BBC
Philharmonic Orchestra and Orchestre Chambre de Catalogne amongst others.
In September 2009 Benjamin was awarded the
Barlow Endowment Prize for composition, becoming only the second British
composer in twenty-five years to be awarded the prize. His subsequent
commission for a trombone concerto will be premiered by the New York
Philharmonic’s Principal trombonist, Joseph Alessi, in April 2012. Additional
commissions now in progress include a new work for the Fort Macleod
International Festival (2011), a set of piano preludes for Russian pianist
Veronika Ilinskaya and his first opera, Welcome to Deen. In 2010 Benjamin was a
featured artist at the Imaginez Maintenant Festival in Amiens where new works were performed by Trio
Chausson, Andrei Korobeinikov and Sarah Pagin. In 2007 Benjamin also became the first
classical composer to sign a deal with the Prince’s Trust Music Publishing,
whilst also featuring in BBC Music Magazine in their Rising Stars feature.
A committed, active and innovative figure
in musical access for all, Benjamin was Director of Music at the Pembroke Academy
in South London from 2006-2010. In 2010 he was made President of the Academy as
a reflection of his achievements over his tenure as Director.
