Giulio Cilona

Rising American-Belgian conductor Giulio Cilona is the winner of the 10th Ernst-von-Schuch Conducting Prize 2024 and prize winner at the International Opera Conducting Competition 2022 at the Opéra Royal de Wallonie-Liège. He served as Kapellmeister at the Deutsche Oper Berlin and Principal Guest at the Opera National de Lorraine-Nancy.

His recent debuts with the Konzerthaus Orchester Berlin, Orchestra Nazionale della RAI, Orchestre du Capitole de Toulouse, Gürzenich Orchester Köln, Bergen Philharmonic as well as at the Semperoper Dresden (Die Zauberflöte, Le Nozze di Figaro), Rossini Opera Festival, Norwegian National Opera in Oslo (Cosi fan Tutte) and Deutsche Oper am Rhein were welcomed with great acclaim. In April, he garnered great success at the Orchestra Nazionale della RAI as he replaced Fabio Luisi on short-notice, returning only a few weeks after his first appearance with the orchestra.

The 25/26 season will mark Cilona’s debuts at the Danish Royal Opera Copenhagen for the double-bill Cavalleria Rusticana and Pagliacci, at the Opéra de Lyon (Louise by Charpentier), Opéra de Lausanne (Rigoletto) and will return to Semperoper Dresden (Don Giovanni and Die Zauberflöte), conducting and playing the recits from the fortepiano, at the Deutsche Oper Berlin (Suor Angelica and Gianni Schcchi), Oper Köln, leading the Gürzenich-Orchester Köln in Hänsel und Gretel, as well as symphonic debuts with the Staatskapelle Weimar, Orchestre Philharmonique de Liège and at the Festival MITO in Turin (Orchestra del Teatro Regio Torino). A special highlight of the 25/26 season will include Cilona’s performance of Beethoven 5th Piano Concerto “Emperor” at the Orchestre de l’Opera de Rouen-Normandie on period instruments, playing and conducting simultaneously.

During his time as Kapellmeister at the Deutsche Oper Berlin, Cilona conducted numerous titles such as Puccini’s Il Trittico, Turandot, La Bohème, Der Fliegende Holländer, Le Nozze di Figaro, Ponchielli’s La Gioconda, Carmen, Rigoletto, La Traviata, Il Viaggio a Reims, Il Barbiere di Siviglia and Die Zauberflöte.

Other notable engagements include a long-term collaboration with the Opéra National de Lorraine-Nancy, with particularly successful productions of Don Pasquale and La Cenerentola and a memorable 5th Symphony by G. Mahler, as well as symphony concerts at the Teatro Verdi in Trieste and Orchestre des Pays de la Loire, and guest appearances at the Opera Royal de Wallonie-Liège (Offenbach L’Ile de Tulipatan), Staatstheater Mainz (P. Maxwell Davies’ Eight Songs for a Mad King and Miss Donnitshorne’s Maggot), Buxton International Festival (La Donna del Lago), and at Teatro Alighieri di Ravenna (Il Barbiere di Siviglia), after the which Cilona was nominated „Revelation 2024” by the Italian critic Pierachille Dolfini.

Cilona previously worked as a Kapellmeister at the Hannover Staatsoper where he has conducted over 100 performances, including Lydia Steier’s new production of Le Nozze di Figaro (live-streamed on Operavision), Dialogues des Carmélites, Tosca, La Bohème, Così fan Tutte, L’Elisir d’Amore, Hänsel und Gretel and Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo and symphony concerts.

He completed his studies in orchestra conducting at the Mozarteum Universität Salzburg with Bruno Weil and was awarded the Bernhard-Paumgartner-Medaille by the Stiftung Mozarteum in 2019, given yearly to one single exceptionally gifted student of the University. During his studies, he served repeatedly as an assistant and repetiteur for the Salzburg Festspiele.

Cilona also overtook numerous opera performances at the Mozarteum such as Alcina, La Finta Semplice, Les Contes d’Hoffmann, Philippe Boesmans opera Reigen with the Österreichisches Ensemble für neue Musik, and symphony concerts.

He also studied at the Hochschule für Musik, Theater und Medien Hannover and the Koninklijk Conservatorium Brussel, where he graduated with Magna cum Lauda mention in Piano, Conducting and Composition.

As a composer, Cilona premiered his Concertino for Piano with orchestra at age 18, performed several of his works chamber music and solo pieces, most notably in a symphonic concert at the Théâtre Royal de Namur with a total formation of over 200 musicians and choristers.

As a pianist soloist, he performed Gershwin Concerto in F (live-streamed on EuroClassical Planet), Beethoven 2nd Piano Concerto among other piano concertos with orchestra, and was awarded prizes and took part in several piano competitions such as Aarhus International Piano Competition, Concours Andrée Charlier, Prix des Jeunes de Verviers, Concours Rotary Breughel (Flagey Studio 4, Bruxelles) and Concours Cavatine, after which he was offered a recital tour in Morocco at age 11.

As parallel instrumental practice, Giulio studied harpsichord and organ and has a broad interest in historical instrumental practice. He took part as a continuo player in numerous oratorios and baroque operas. Giulio performed on many renowned instruments such as the organs in the Cathedrâle Saint-Nicolas de Genève, the ‘Franz Liszt Organ’ at the Fribourg Cathedral, Basilica San Lorenzo di Firenze, etc. He also studied violin and trumpet in his early years.

Giulio Cilona speaks French, Italian, English, German and Armenian fluently. He is married to the Armenian soprano Lilit Davtyan.